Under The Table
by Ange de l'eau
Summary: The War is drawing to a close. Through a charmed parchment, Ginevra Weasley communicates with an mysterious stranger in Hogwarts. Can two young hearts that beat with doubt find each other amidst the turmoil of the war? DG
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

' _The absence of flaw in beauty is itself a flaw.' _

Ginerva Weasley sighed and slumped against her chair. She had a sleepless night yesterday and was feeling exhausted. Professor Flitwick's long, boring lecture on the importance of the sixth year did not help either. Although her body was in class, her mind was far, far away.

She could not help wondering where Charlie was now. He had joined the Order and disappeared, going on a secret mission. Her mother had blatantly refused Charlie to join the Order. But the war was escalating and the Death Eaters were on a mad rampage, killing anyone, wizard or muggle, that crossed paths with them. Hence, the Order needed all the help they could get. The Death Eaters were also randomly destroying and raiding villages. In other words, the Wizarding World was very near chaos. Ron had wanted to join Charlie, but Molly insisted that he had to finish school before 'attempting anything stupid'.

Since Charlie had left, Ginny's anxiety for his safety showed even in her sleep. Terrifying nightmares plagued her dreams. Nightmares that sometimes did not even allow her to sleep a wink at all. Charlie was, after all, her favourite brother, tied with the twins, Fred and George.

"Okay, class. Instead of doing Charms today, I'll be teaching you something else".

Ginny snapped out of her reverie. Apparently, Professor Flitwick had finished his 'the importance of the sixth year' speech.

"Put away your textbooks, please. You won't be needing them". Professor Flitwick instructed, perched on the top of a huge stack of books.

" Professor Dumbledore has asked me to teach everyone of you how to perform a Etummoc charm. This is done in view of the war. Professor Dumbledore himself has invented this charm. Each person will be given two pairs of parchments. One set of them will be given to the parents and you may do what you will with the other set. It allows you to have a private conversation with whoever who holds the second piece of parchment which is bind to the first. I must remind you that this is strictly confidential and any student that tells anyone out of this school, who is not supposed to know will be severely punished by the Ministry of Magic and might even be sent to Azkaban. "

Ginny sat up a little straighter. _This was going to be interesting._

"There will then be no need for the sending of letters, unless it's a parcel. As the members of the Order are using it as a means of communication, you can be safely assured that it is private and no one will be able to intercept the messages and read them, except the person who holds the second piece of parchment. Now, take out your wands. It's a relatively easy charm, so all of you should be able to master it by the end of this lesson".

Ginny walked out of the Charms classroom. The lesson had been fun. She had been able to do the charm just after a few tries. Professor Flitwick had been so pleased that he gave her a charmed feather that could dance and twirl around. It amused her to no ends, seeing the white tuft of snowy feathers floating about and dancing in the air. Not wanting to lose it, she had stuffed it into her pocket. She could feel the feather wriggling underneath her robes. It did not want to go into her pocket, but she had forced it anyway. Ginny felt a little sorry for the feather, but was too fond of it to let it float around along the corridors, and to be picked up by someone else.

"Hey." Luna Lovegood exited the Charms classroom. "You were fantastic!"

"Thanks".

Luna was her best friend. They practically went everywhere together. Although Luna could be a little queer at times, Ginny did not mind at all. She hated those uncouth fools who purposely went out of their way to humiliate and tease Luna. To make matters worse, they even nicknamed her 'Loony'.

How rude and insolent could they get? Did they have too much time on their hands to spare? So much so they mocked poor, innocent girls every time they saw one? _Calm down, _she told herself. Those fools always made her angry.

"Come on", Luna said. "If we keep standing here, we'll be late for class".

They squeezed through the sea of people. Everyone was rushing to get to his or her next class on time. People pushed and shoved their way through.

"Watch it", Ginny growled to a person roughly pushing her.

"This is madness!" Luna exclaimed.

"Precisely"

Out of nowhere, a first-year student charged through the crowd, knocking Ginny in the process. She tried to keep her balance, but there was nothing to hold onto. She did not have any idea where Luna was now.

Losing her balance, she landed flatly on her butt, with her newly charmed parchments from Charm class fluttering everywhere and the contents of her bag spilling out.

The mad crowd has disappeared around the corner, leaving her on the floor. Grumbling, Ginny tucked a stray strand of auburn hair behind her ear and started to pick up her belongings, before rushing off to find Luna and getting to her next class.

What Ginny did not know was that a piece of the charmed parchment had fluttered innocently when she had fallen down. The piece of parchment was blown across the corridor carried on the wings of a cool, calm breeze, as its mistress rushed away.

* * *

A pale, pointed face boy walked across the corridor. Draco Malfoy realized that he was late for his next class, Potions. _No point hurrying_, he told himself. Snape always did not mind when it came to Slytherins, especially him. Sauntering across the corridor, Draco saw a piece of parchment on the ground. He recognized it to be the charmed parchment that Dumbledore had the teachers teach every student in Hogwarts. _Someone must have dropped it_, he mused. Not knowing the reason why, he picked it up and put it into his pocket, before proceeding to the Potion classroom. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

'_One sometimes finds what one is not looking for.'_

"Hey Luna!" Ginny Weasley greeted Luna Lovegood at the breakfast table the next morning.

Luna looked up from her plate as Ginny made her way towards Luna.

Soon, they started chatting away happily.

After breakfast, as they were walking to their dormitory to get their books for lessons, Ginny has made up her mind to share with Luna about her recent discovery.

_After all, we are friends and surely, she would not tell anyone else about it_, Ginny thought to herself.

"Luna, what did you do with your charmed parchments?" Ginny asked out of a sudden.

" Oh, I have sent one to my parents and the other to my Grandparents", Luna replied. "Why are you talking about the charmed parchments all of a sudden?"

"Nothing much. Would you promise not to tell anyone if I were to tell you something?"

"Of course, when have I ever told anyone else about our secrets? Come on, spit it out!"

Ginny lowered her volume and whispered cautiously," I have lost one of my parchment and I think that someone must have took it. I must have dropped it yesterday when I fell down".

Then, they hurriedly went back to their dormitory, grabbed their bags and rushed to class before the mad crowd arrived as per usual.

Before going to bed that night, Ginny asked, "Luna, do you know the lost parchment I told you about this morning? What do you think I should do about it? I mean… what would you do if you were in my shoes?"

"Oh, maybe you should just forget about it. Its just a piece of parchment, you've given one to your parents anyway, so why bother finding it", Luna replied carelessly, busy doodling something on a piece of paper.

Ginny kept silent, biting back a retort_. I should never have talked to her about this, knowing that she might never understand and hardly ever thinks before replying_, Ginny fumed madly.

That night, Ginny turned and tossed on her bed. She could not go to sleep even though she was extremely worn out. In her mind, she kept thinking about her lost piece of charmed parchment.

_Where did it go? Who is it with now? Or is it still fluttering down the hundreds of corridors? Surely, someone should have found it by now. _Finally, exhaustion clouded her mind and she fell into a deep slumber.

The next morning, during Divination class, Professor Trelawney begin with exaggerating about the importance of divination and what they were about to learn this year.

"Crystal ball gazing is one of the most important ways to learn about your future", she said in her screechy voice.

_Not again_, Ginny moaned to herself. _Divination is one of the worst things ever to learn._

As Ginny looked around for something more interesting to do than dying here in this hot stuffy room, she remembered her charmed parchment.

Taking it out of her pocket, she put it on the table and picked up her old and faithful writing quill, the one she had used for many years. It was given to her as a birthday gift from Charlie a long time back. She had decided to write on her part of her charmed parchment. It would be of no use to her if she did not find the other piece. If someone took it, hopefully the person would be kind enough to return it. If her parchment was still fluttering innocently down the hundreds of corridors in Hogwarts – well, at least she had tried her best getting it back.

With her hand poised directly over the parchment, she thought. _What do I say?_

After a few minutes, her hand moved and the scratching of her quill could be heard as Ginny wrote her message.

* * *

Draco Malfoy sat at his usual table during Transfiguration, listening to Professor McGonagall explain the techniques of transfiguring a spoon into a raccoon for the third time. Apparently, some dimwit from Gryffindor could not get this fairly simple spell into his thick, oversized head. _Pity it wasn't Potter,_ he thought. _Or the thickheaded Weasley sitting next to him._

He was bored out of his wits. Why should he suffer in silence just because that stupid Gryffindor could not get something right? But Draco knew better than to voice his opinions, whether good or bad, to McGonagall. He would, at the best circumstance, earn himself a steely glare from her or even be sent to detention. Not that it happened to him, but someone had tried talking back to Professor McGonagall before and it earned him a date with the toilets till midnight.

That boy had to clean the toilets without using magic at all. What's more, it was with Flich, who would go out of his way to prolong the detention.

_Not that I pity him though_, Draco thought. _Malfoy's don't pity anyone, especially not a poor, muggle-loving fool._

Rifling through his pockets to see if there was anything worth devoting his attention to, his hand came upon an unfamiliar piece of parchment. He pulled it out and realized that it was the parchment he found in the corridors just a few days before.

But now, instead of a blank piece of parchment, he saw a message written on it.

_Hi! I lost this parchment a few days before. If someone has picked this parchment up, I implore you to return it to me. If not, at least I've done my best._

The handwriting was quite round and curvy. It looked quite feminine too.

Draco picked up his quill. The quill looked brand new. Not one strand of feather was out of place. He did not know why, but he felt strangely compelled to write a reply.

_What do I say?_ He thought.

_**Who are you? Why should I return the parchment to you?**_

The person wrote back. _My name is of no importance. You should return it to me because my parchment would be of no use to me unless I have the other piece. And besides, I can't do anything with one piece._

_**Wrong.**_

_Please tell me, why am I wrong?_

_**You made a mistake.**_

_What mistake?_

_**About you not being able to do anything with one piece.**_

_So? What's my mistake?_

_**I know something you would be able to do with it**._

_Which is?_

_**Talking to me when I'm bored.**_

_Who are you? Why should I talk to you when you are bored anyway?_

**_My name is of no importance. You should talk to me because I'm bored and it is my very pathetic source of entertainment._**

_You treat me as a source of entertainment? How very rude of you._

_**Who said I was polite?**_

_That's true. I could see that from the first sentence you wrote._

Draco laughed inwardly. _Now, this is someone I've to meet_, he thought. _But when he meets me in person, I suppose he will be too busy stuttering in fear than to dare talk back to me. _

Just then, the bell rang. Draco put the parchment into his pocket before striding out of the Transfiguration classroom.

* * *

Professor Trelawney was delaying the lesson. Usually, she would complain but this time, she had her own source of entertainment. Ginny sighed and leaned back. _Now take that_, she thought, smiling at her reply. That person had been horrendously rude and obnoxious. She waited for a few minutes for a reply. Receiving nothing, she picked up her quill and scrawled,' Ha ha, Cat got your tongue?'

"Okay class. You can go." Professor Trelawney dismissed them in her singsong voice.

Lifting her bag over her shoulder, Ginny put the parchment in her pocket and followed Luna out of the class.

* * *

A/N: I noticed I did not put a disclaimer for the earlier chapter, so here it is.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

'_No one can foresee what destiny holds in store.'_

Weeks flew by and before Ginny knew it, two months had passed since she had written her first message to the person who held the other piece of her parchment. She had bugged him countless times to return her parchment but he always had the same answer, '_No_'Ginny even went as far as to try to hunt this mysterious being down, but to no avail.

Sadly, her death threats, which were her forte and could even make her brothers hide in fear, seemed to be lost on this person. He would merely shrug them off with witty and arrogant replies.

Nothing she said ever made him in the least agitated or annoyed. Ginny hoped she would have the chance of meeting this mysterious person, whose demeanor was so cool, it was almost in-human. She had never ever met someone who was as calm and collected as him. All her brothers, including Harry, were never so calm. They expressed their true emotions almost all the time and Ginny could tell when they were faking it.

Nowadays, Harry had become quieter and more secretive, seldom talking to anyone but Ron or Hermione. _I guess it's the stress from all that studying, _Ginny thought. However, she suspected that the nearing of the Final Battle had a lot to do with it.

It seemed as though everyone was hiding something. Harry was, that's for sure. As much as she tried to deny it, Ginny had to admit that she herself was. Not telling Luna about this person whom she had been communicating with for the past two months definitely counted as hiding something from her best friend.

Without Ginny's knowledge, Luna had been no saint either. Luna had been keeping secrets from Ginny. Secrets that if landed in the wrong hands, would prove dangerously fatal and might even threaten to tear apart their true and loyal friendship which they had for so many years.

* * *

Ginny sat in the Gryffindor common room, with piles of books stacked precariously on the table. Stack of parchments and several bottles of ink cluttered the table. The teachers had given them tons of homework to do before Monday. So, Ginny was spending a gloriously sunny Sunday struggling to finish her homework by the next day. 

_What a waste of a nice, sunny day, _Ginny thought, munching on a bar of Honeydukes best chocolate. Most girls avoided eating chocolate because they were afraid they would gain weight and lose their stick-like body shape. But Ginny could not care less. She ate whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. Luna was the same too. Maybe that's why they were such good friends.

Speaking of Luna… where was she? _Luna is supposed to be here slogging away with me. Could she have forgot? Wherever she is, she had better finish her homework soon, or risk getting detentions from all the teachers. _This was actually not much of a surprise to Ginny. Luna had disappeared numerous times for the past few weeks.

When Ginny had questioned her whereabouts, Luna had just muttered a quick '_I was walking' _and disappeared into the bathroom to shower. After that, Ginny had not asked her anymore.

Throwing her chocolate wrapper into a pile of unwanted crumpled papers sitting on her desk, she tried to concentrate on the methods of making a Sleepless Draught.

_Firstly, put a hydrated moonstone into the cauldron and boil till it turns blue. _

_Extract the moonstone and add in the leaf of a matured Mandrake plant. _

_Stir counter-clockwise for 7 minutes and _---

"Ginny!" Ron pounded down the stairs loudly, breaking through her train of thought. She had been so absorbed in her work, she did not hear him enter the room. "Ginny, have you seen my wand? I can't seem to find it!"

Ginny sighed. _Trust my absent-minded brother to interrupt me at a time like this. Am I supposed to know where he keeps his underwear too? _

"Check your bedside table, Ronald."

Ron ran back up the stairs and into the boys' dormitories to search for his wand.

Ginny then sat back in her chair, waiting for the usual shout of '_I've found it!_' that was sure to come soon. _Now, where were Harry and Hermione? They were sure to be around now that Ron was here. _

As if they read her mind, the portrait door opened, revealing Harry and Hermione.

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry asked, plopping himself down on the chair opposite hers.

"He's upstairs," Ginny replied, as Hermione climbed up the stairs to look for Ron.

"So…how are you doing?" Harry asked, attempting to strike up a conversation.

"Fine."

"You know, if you really need help with the Sleepless Draught, I could help you…"Harry offered. Ginny could not help raising her eyebrows. She had personally heard Hermione saying that Harry had failed his Potions the year before.

Harry reached out across the overcrowded table, attempting to take the book Ginny had been reading from a few minutes before.

The tall stack of messy parchments and books tottered and swayed from side to side. Ginny reached out hurriedly…

"I've found it!" came the strangled yell from the boys' dormitories.

_CRASH! _The stack of parchments and books toppled to the ground, spilling everywhere messily.

"I'll help!" Harry volunteered quickly.

Ignoring Ginny's loud protests, he dropped on all fours and crawled under the table, trying to pick up the books and parchments that had fallen underneath the table. Crawling around like an animal, he quickly picked up handfuls of parchments, desperate to clear up the mess that he had just created.

"I've got them all!" Harry yelled, with loads of parchment and books in his arms, he tried crawling out from beneath the table, only succeeding in hitting his head hard against the bottom of the table.

The whole table shook. The bottles of ink fell onto the floor, glass shattered into millions of bits. Dark ink was slowing seeping through the carpets and staining the plush red décor.

The stack of parchments and books that Harry had in his arms were scattered on the floor as Harry rubbed his head, grimacing in pain. There definitely was going to be a bruise there.

As if things could not get any worse, Ron thundered down the stairs with Hermione in tow. "Look, I found it!" Ron flashed his wand for Ginny to see.

"Great for you, Ronald," Ginny sighed wearily. "Could I have some peace please?" _Hopefully they can catch the hint, especially Ron. _It is not that Ginny did not like him. Ginny loved all her brothers, but she really needed some peace now.

Ginny sent a pleading look to Hermione. _Hopefully, she will understand. _Hermione nodded. Giving Ginny an encouraging smile, she ushered Ron and Harry out of the room.

"What's up with her?" Ron asked as they were walking out.

"Yeah… She didn't seem very…friendly just now." Harry agreed, perplexed.

"Well, at least she studies and studies hard, unlike you two." Hermione retorted. She hid a smile, knowing she had hit the right spot as Ron's ears started to turn a dark shade of pink.

Ginny slumped back against her chair. All that work had really stressed her out. Crouching down, she set about retrieving all the fallen parchments and book. She unwrapped another bar of chocolate and took a big bit, relishing its heavenly taste and creamy texture. Then, she got down to work.

_

* * *

Ah… I'm done…finally…_Ginny stretched out and yawned. It was already midnight. She had spent the whole afternoon doing her work. Her head was throbbing painfully. She decided to take a walk to clear her mind. Looking at her watch, she realized that she only had ten minutes before she could get caught for loitering the corridors. _Even ten minutes will do…_

Ginny exited the common room, carrying a small cloak with her in case it was chilly. After a few minutes of walking, she decided to return to the common room. The walk, short as it was, really helped to clear her mind and free her from her throbbing headache she had earlier on. As she was walking back, she heard some voices talking in a corridor nearby. The voices were a little muffled, but she could tell one was male and the other was female. The female voice sounded familiar… _Too familiar…a voice she heard everyday… _

* * *

A/N: Well, here it is… It is slightly longer than the second chapter…_slightly_. Haha. I know! There is nothing about the parchment in this chapter. I'm sorry, but I realised that the messages in the parchment did not fit into this chapter. Anyway, I caught a bad cold when I was writing this. So bear with me, I'll update the next chapter soon. The parchment will definitely be in it! See you! Hope to see more reviews! 


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_'Friendship is like a prism through which the many variations of beauty are revealed in our lives.'_

Ginny swallowed nervously as she inched closer towards the voices. As she moved closer, the voices got louder. But they were still too muffled to make out any words. _Who could they be? What were they doing?_

She considered going back to the safety of then common room, but curiosity got the better of her. She moved a little closer, breathing heavily. The hair on the nape of her neck prickled uneasily. She had a sinking suspicion that she was being watched.

Forcing the air out of her mouth with slow steady breaths, she went closer again, hoping to catch a word of their conversation. She knew she was eavesdropping but she could not help it. It seemed really suspicious that some people were hiding in a room, having a secret conversation. _What if they found her listening to their conversation? What if they were not students like what she expected them to be? Could it possibly be Death Eaters who just sneaked into Hogwarts? Waiting for a chance to strike? _She had to find out.

The long corridor was empty, deserted. No one was around…except her and those two people. Nothing was scarier than an empty corridor.

A cold, chilly breeze blew through Ginny's hair. She then wrapped the cloak tighter around herself. _Thank goodness I brought it. _

She caught sight of a door that was left ajar. The room inside was dimly lit, most likely with a few candles or a small lamp only. Whoever was inside obviously did not want to be caught by Filch. Ginny made towards it, with the grace and stealth of a feline.

Suddenly, she turned her head to the left. _What was that? Who made that sound?_

"Meow…" 

_Oh no. Mrs Norris. Run. _Ginny sprinted down the corridor as quickly and quietly as she could, searching for a place to hide.

If Mrs Norris was there, that meant Filch was sure to be close.

A small closet door to the right caught her eye. The handles were covered in red velvet. Without pausing to think, she ran there and opened the closet door, before squeezing herself in. _Lucky for this closet, or I would have been toast. _

An old musty smell entered her nostrils. There was a strange smell in this closet. Not a pleasant smell, but not an unpleasant one either. Raising herself a little higher and higher each time, Ginny found that she could stand in this closet. This closet was, actually not small at all.

With her hands outstretched, she groped about in the dark, trying to see how big this closet was.

All of a sudden, she stepped on the cloak that she was wearing and landed on the floor with a loud "_THUMP!" _Ginny looked up anxiously from the floor, to see if anyone outside had heard the sound of her falling.

For a few minutes, Ginny sat on the cool floor, in complete silence, with her ears strained for any noises coming from the outside. Finally sure that no one heard her; she got back on her feet.

She blinked a few times, but it was so dark, Ginny could not even see her five fingers right in front of her. She needed a candle, a lamp, anything to help her see in this dark.

While groping about just now, she had lost the direction in which the closet door was. _Oh no… _Her stomach dropped. _I could be stuck in here, in the dark, forever! I'll never see my family again! _Her eyes started to water.

_Calm down, _she told herself. Even if she were stuck here, surely by morning they would have noticed her disappearance and would start a search for her? But if they found her, she would definitely be in huge trouble for being out of bed in the first place.

Ginny sighed dismally. She needed to get out of here. To do that, she needed light. To get light, she needed…

Of course! How could I've been so stupid? 

_My wand! _

Hope drying the tears forming in her eyes, Ginny dug deep into her pocket to find her wand.

It was not there.

Panicking, she dropped onto her knees and started digging her other pocket desperately. Her fingers brushed something hard. Praying that it was her wand, she pulled it out. To her utmost relief, it was. Running her fingers along the familiar grooves in the grained wood, Ginny muttered, "_Lumos…"_

All at once, part of the room, brightened and she could see how big the room was. It was no closet.

Pointing her wand at one of the walls, she saw a huge grey rock, instead of seeing smooth vertical pillars that made up walls. Carved into it were shelves. Upon closer inspection, she saw that there were many books on those shelves. Ginny pointed her wand in all directions and discovered that the room was filled with books.

She saw a fireplace in front of her. She walked towards in and lit it with the simplest spells of her wand.

The fireplace blazed with fire. Warm heat was radiating out from the fireplace in waves. Ginny no longer needed her cloak to keep her warm.

She set her cloak on the floor. To her surprise, the floor was made out of pure white marble. If one did not look carefully, it would seem like snow.

Ginny looked around in awe. Now that the fireplace was lit, she could see everything very clearly.

The bookshelves were carved out of stone. Intricate patterns and designs adorned the huge bookshelves. Each design was different from the other, so Ginny concluded that they were hand-carved. Everything in this room looked antique and expensive.

What is this room doing inside Hogwarts? Does it contain some sort of dangerous creature?

Hogwarts was full of mysteries. Some not even found yet. _Could this room be one of them?_

Ginny kept her wand close to her in case she might need it to defend herself. She reached out and randomly picked a book off its shelf. Blowing dust off the cover, she opened it.

The title read '_The Grand History of the Wizarding World'._

_What was that? _Ginny had never heard of such a book before. _History of the Wizarding World? _This was queer…

Somewhere in the castle, the clock chimed midnight. Ginny had no idea she had been here for so long. Picking up her cloak, she found the door and decided to return to the common room. _I can always come back tomorrow night. _

With the book safely tucked in her arms, Ginny ran back to the Gryffindor common room and plopped herself onto her bed.

Soon, the excitement from her night adventure faded and Ginny fell into a deep sleep with the book in her arms.

* * *

The next morning, Ginny woke up with a sore neck. She had fallen asleep on that extremely hard and stiff book. She looked over at her roommate, Luna who was sleeping peacefully on her bed. 

Massaging her neck gently with her hands, she tucked the book under her bed, not wanting anyone to see the book and question her about it.

"Hey…" Ginny shook Luna awake. "Wake up or you will be late…"

"What?" Luna mumbled, waking up at once. "Oh…thanks for waking me up…"

"Welcome." Ginny yawned.

Ginny and Luna got dressed and went down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Ginny made a mental note to read on what that book was about later.

The morning passed by quickly. All the teachers had praised Ginny for the punctual submission of her homework since a lot of students did not pass it up. Ginny even earned a few points for Gryffindor. Luna had finished all her homework too.

_But how could she have finished all her homework when she did not even meet me to study? _Ginny wondered. Nevertheless, she decided to keep her mouth shut.

That evening, Ginny lay on her bed, doing her homework for that day. Luna was also lying on her bed, doing her work too. When Ginny was done with her homework, she packed all her work and took out her charmed parchment.

_Hey! How was your day? _Ginny wrote.

_**It has been a long time since we talked. Miss me? **_

_Miss you? You are sadly mistaken. Anyway, we just talked yesterday. That's not very long, is it?_

**_The hours pass slowly when you are separated from your loved one. _**

_Whatever._ Ginny scrawled. She realised that she did not know whether the person writing to her now was really male or female.

**_How unimaginative. Just a 'whatever'? _**

_Can I ask you a question and you promise to answer me truthfully? _

**_It depends on the question. _**

_Vowing with the 'Elkaerbnu' charm?_

It was a simple charm used whereby the two users sign a contract of agreement where the truth and only the truth will be told as the answer to the question. Otherwise, the breaker of the charm will be in a coma for a few months. It had happened to some students before. Ginny was sure the answer would be '_No_', but she decided to try her luck.

_**Tell me the question first. **_

_He is actually considering it? _Ginny thought happily. _Good! I'll be one step closer to discovering his or her identity!_

_The question is: Are you a boy or a girl? _

_**Alright. I'll sign the agreement. But you will have to answer that question too. **_

_Deal. _With that, Ginny had signed the magical contract between the recipient of her messages and herself.

_**Deal. **_

_So… Answer the question._

**_Why can't you answer first?_**

_It is because it was my idea to ask the question._

**_Fine. Boy. _**

_Now that was not so hard, was it? _

**_Answer the question. _**

_A little bossy now, aren't you? _

**_Don't change the subject. Just answer the question. _**

_Alright, Mr Bossy. Girl._

**_Now that was not so hard, was it?_**

_Look who is being unimaginative now? _

**_How clever. _**

_Thank you. I always knew I am an intelligent and bright girl._

**_You are welcome. _**

_So you are a boy, huh? That eliminates about half the student population in Hogwarts._

**_You just asked that question because you hope to find out who I am?_**

_Not hope. I will._

**_Well, I've got to admit, your determination really impresses me. But good luck with trying to find out my identity. I am afraid you never will._**

_Says who? _

**_Says me. _**

_What makes you think I'll never find out who you are? _

**_Well, for the simple reason that I am smarter than you. _**

_How do you know that you are smarter than me when you don't even know who I am? I might even be older than you. _

_**True. But I will always be smarter.** _

_Has anybody ever told you that you are one big egoistic prat? _

_**Nope. You must be the first. **_

_Well, I am honoured. _

_**You should be. **_

_In case your infantile mind cannot grasp the simple fact, I just have to tell you now; I was just being sarcastic. Need a dictionary to search for the word 'sarcastic'? I saw this really effective dictionary in the library a few days ago. _

_**There is no need, I'm afraid. I know perfectly well what 'sarcastic' means. **_

_I__was worried you didn't. _

**_Your concern is so touching._ **Ginny giggled. She did not know why. For someone this mean and rude, he could sure make her laugh.

_Well, I have to sleep now. Goodnight._

For a few minutes, there was no response. But just as Ginny was about to put away the parchment, a reply appeared.

**_Goodnight._**

* * *

Draco Malfoy sighed as he kept the parchment. No one had said a mere 'Goodnight' to him in a long time. Not that it mattered to him, but it just… just felt nice to hear someone say that once in a while…Back at the Malfoy Manor, it was always quiet. His mother would be busy in her room while his father was usually out on business. Of course, 'business' usually meant with the Death Eaters. 

He looked around at his surroundings. He was chosen as Head Boy this year so he had private dormitories and a huge room (well, not really that huge to him but at least bigger than the normal dormitories) to himself. Switching off the lights with his wand, he soon fell asleep.

* * *

Ginny smiled as she read the message. She sat up, noticing that Luna eyes were on her. 

"What?" Ginny asked.

"Nothing." Luna replied. "So, what was so funny?"

"Funny?"

"Yeah… you were giggling like crazy… Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. It's just that…" Ginny trailed off, not sure of what she was going to say. She had not told Luna about the person who took her parchment and now was talking to her through it. Finally, she made her decision. "I haven't been entirely honest with you…"

* * *

A/N: So how is this? It is about three pages longer than usual. Haha… Well, I would really appreciate it if you could review. I welcome all your comments whether bad or good. Thanks for all the review so far! So, please review! Thank you! 

Here are some of the reviewers for Chapter 3 I want to thank:

**harrypotterchick4ever**, **xsimple and cleanx**, **SlytherinSexyGodess **


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"_We are the leaves of one branch, the drops of one sea, the flowers of one garden."_

"What?"

"You know the parchment I lost?" Ginny replied.

"Yeah..." Luna said uncertainly.

"Actually someone found it and when I asked him to return it to me, he refused, so-"

"How did you know he refused to return it to you?" Luna interrupted; sitting at the edge of her bed, with her eyes wide open.

"I wrote a message on that parchment and he replied. Now, we are talking to each other whenever we are free." Ginny whispered, afraid someone else might overhear what she said.

"More like messaging each other." Luna whispered back. "So let me get this straight. You are messaging or talking, whichever term you prefer to use, to a stranger you don't even know during your free time?"

"More or less." Ginny admitted.

"Cool. Does he know who you are?"

"Nope. Only that I'm a girl. He told me that he's a _'he'_ using the '_Elkaerbnu_' Charm."

"Oh. We will probably find out tomorrow if he is lying. Just check if anyone was sent to the Hospital Wing due to a coma."

"Yup." Ginny agreed. "Let's go to bed. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Ginny tucked herself into bed, glad that Luna had taken it so well.

"Ginny?" Luna sat up from her bed. "Thanks for telling me."

"No problem. What are friends for, right?" Ginny replied. "But it's a secret. So, keep it to yourself, alright?"

"Sure."

With that, Ginny closed her eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

_Darkness... _

_That's all she saw..._

_She was chilled to the bone, with icy cold water dripping off her. Her hands were cold and clammy, stiff from the biting cold. A cold wind blew. Hard. She lost her balance and fell down onto pure nothingness. The pure force of the wind left her bruised and battered. _

_The icy wind was mercilessly biting into her raw skin but she willed herself to stand, albeit shakily._

"_Giiiinnnnnnnyyy..."_

_What was that?_

_She turned around quickly. _

_Nothing was there. _

"_Giiiinnnnnnnyyyyy..."_

_This time it sounded louder, like it was closer to her. _

"_Who is that?" she yelled. Her parched throat throbbed in pain. _

_She staggered backwards. _

"_Giiiiiinnnnnnnyyy..."_

_It sounded like it was right next to her. _

"_Who are you?" she yelled, acting braver than she felt. "Who are you?"_

_The voice chuckled. _

_She felt something brushing her shoulder. _

_Turning around, she saw nothing there again. _

"_Who are you?" she shrieked._

"_You should know who I am..." The voice drawled. _

_Two red spots started glowing in the darkness. The red light grew brighter and brighter with each passing minute. The intensity of the red glowing light blinded her. _

_Covering her eyes, she turned and ran. _

_On and on she ran, without stopping. She felt something gripping her ankle, but she yanked it out and continued running. _

_Pain shot up her legs. Her muscles were sore and aching but she forced her legs to keep moving. Her breaths came out in short heavy gasps for air. Her heart felt like it would burst out of her ribcage. _

_On she ran, as fast as her legs could carry her. The wind blew her auburn hair all over her face, but she still did not notice. She ran with no purpose or direction at all. She just ran wherever her legs took her. _

_Suddenly, she stopped. Her foot was stuck to the ground. She tried pulling it out, but in vain. _

_A puddle of dark ink grew at her foot. It spread, further and wider. _

_She was stuck. _

_As the puddle grew larger, she started sinking into it. She screamed hysterically and called for help. _

_No one answered. _

_She tried to grasp the puddle of dark ink, but it did not help. She could only struggle helplessly as the puddle of dark ink swallowed her up. _

_Falling through a dark tunnel, she landed in the middle of a green, grassy clearing. She wandered aimlessly through the forest till she reached a stream. _

_There, long green vines hung from the branches of trees. The dirty and murky water trickled down the stones and pebbles. Dark green moss covered these stones. _

"_Help!" A voice cried through the woods. She could not believe her ears. _

_It sounded like..._

_Charlie? _

_She immediately ran towards the source of the yell. Crashing through the shrubs and bushes, she only had one thought in her mind: To get to Charlie. _

_A branch had whipped her across the face, but she did not care. A few droplets of blood dripped down from the cut. She simply wiped them off with her hand and continued running. _

"_Charlie!" she yelled as she came to another clearing. While running, she did not notice that here, the trees were thicker and denser, blocking the weak sunlight from coming through. _

"_He's here..." hissed a voice. _

_She turned around. _

_This time, she saw something. _

_Voldemort was holding his wand against her brother's neck. He was wearing a hooded cloak. Two beady red eyes glowed from the inside of the hood. _

"_This is what he gets for working for the Order." He hissed, snake-like. His wand was pointed at Charlie, who was tied to a tree. He had blood streaming down his head. Charlie looked at Ginny, mouthing the words 'I love you...' _

"_No...don't..." she pleaded. "No...please..."_

_Ignoring her pleas, Voldemort smiled menacingly. _

"_Too bad." He drawled. "Avada Kedavra!"_

"_Nooo..." Ginny howled in anguish, falling to her knees._

* * *

Ginny woke up with a jolt, breathing heavily. This was one of the recurring nightmares that she had ever since Charlie left. Dots of perspiration beaded her forehead. She stumbled out of bed, fumbling for a drink of water to calm her wrecked nerves.

"What happened?" Luna asked blearily, awakened by Ginny's shouts. "Are you alright?"

"Fine." Ginny replied tersely.

She found a glass of water and drank it slowly. The cool water trickled down her dry throat, making her slightly calmer.

Ginny hoped her nightmares did not predict the future or came true in any way. She knew Harry's nightmares could sometimes come true.

She put down the glass of water and rolled over, soon falling into a troubled sleep.

* * *

"How are you?" Harry scooted over. "Are you alright? Luna told us what happened last night."

"I'm fine."

"Why don't you go to Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione suggested. "He will know what to do."

"If it gets worse, I will. Thanks for the advice." Ginny answered. " So... how's your studying going?"

"Almost everyone studies everyday, except those two." Hermione said, jerking her head at Ron and Harry.

Both of them gave an innocent look and shrug before digging into their breakfasts.

Ginny settled beside Luna then picked up an apple. Luna was eating too, although he looked a little distracted.

"Anyone in the Hospital Wing suffering from coma?" Ginny asked.

"Nope." Said Luna, while eating. "That means he told the truth."

"Unfortunately. Or we would have found out who it is."

Harry and Ron gobbled down their breakfast and left with Hermione, who was waiting impatiently for them to finish eating so that she could go to the library to study.

"Don't forget!" Ron told Ginny before he left. "Quidditch practice, tomorrow evening."

Ginny nodded absently, munching on her apple. Something very strange was going on. "Umm...Luna?" Ginny asked. "Do you know that Zabini has been staring at you for the past half and hour that we have been here?"

It was true. Blaise Zabini, runner-up to the _'Prince of Slytherin'_ title, was staring at Luna.

"Really?" Luna replied, sounding a little curious. She looked up and gave him a small smile before going back to her food.

_What was going on? _Ginny noted that Zabini looked delighted at her actions and immediately began talking to Malfoy, who was seated beside him, with a growing smirk on his face.

Ginny must have reflected her confusion and surprise on her face because Luna then looked up at Ginny and said, "Wait... let's go to somewhere more private."

Luna polished off her breakfast surprising quickly and dragged Ginny away from the table. She then brought Ginny to an unused classroom and locked the door with her wand.

Ginny just stood there, aware of the uncomfortable silence growing in the room. Finally, Luna broke the silence. "I think you should know... Sorry for keeping this from you... I know I shouldn't have but... umm... Blaise and I are going out..."

Ginny stared, unable to form any coherent thoughts in her head. The shock was just... overwhelming. Her jaw practically dropped. Luna was staring at her anxiously, waiting with bated breath for her reaction. There was a deadly silence. If a pin had dropped, everyone could have heard it.

Ginny swallowed. "Well, that was... surprising." Silence reigned for a while again, before Ginny choked out, "Do you really like him?"

"Yes." Luna nodded silently.

"Does he really like you?" Ginny questioned.

"Uh-huh..." Luna could feel the thoughts whirling through Ginny's mind.

There was a tense silence.

"Alright..." Ginny sighed reluctantly. "But if he hurts you, that will be the last thing he ever does."

Luna giggled happily and threw her arms around Ginny. "You are the best!" She squealed delightedly.

"I know." Ginny replied smugly, patting Luna's arm gently. However, her voice then took on a more serious tone. "Even though I don't really mind, I still think you should keep it a secret from the rest of the people. That way, you will have less trouble to deal with."

"I know." Luna said, "That was what Blaise said too."

* * *

Ginny looked at Luna, who was humming merrily under her breath. They were in class. She had not known what to say after what Luna told her. What could you say to a friend who kept it secret from you that she was going out with her House's mortal enemy?

Then again, she was no different too. She had not told Luna about the stranger she talked to till yesterday night. That didn't really much of a difference, did it? Speaking of which...

Ginny took out the parchment. There was a message.

**_What should I say to my friend who's absolutely loony over a very weird girl? He keeps yapping about her without stopping and this isn't like him at all. _**

_Hmm... _Ginny thought as she read it.

_If he really likes the girl and the feeling is mutual, then you should encourage him. Anyway, he's your best friend, is he not?_

_**He is. But that girl is from a really different house and she's... well, to put it nicely, strange... **_

_So what if she's from a different house? Does what house you are in really matter? Everyone's different. You might even be strange to me too._

**_I can't be strange. I'm perfectly normal... On a second thought, I wouldn't say I'm normal. 'Special' would be a more appropriate word. _**

'_Special'? Nah... you must be joking. 'Egoistic' suits you better. _Ginny giggled as she wrote her reply.

Luna looked over, eyebrows raised. "Only during your free time, huh?"

Ginny ignored her sarcasm and read the reply.

'_**Egoistic'? I thought you would say 'hot'. Anyone with good taste would say that.**_

_I've good taste. But I haven't seen you before, so I can't presume that 'hot' fits you._

**_True. _**

_Where are you now? _

**_This lesson is so boring. It's killing me._**

_So...how entertaining am I so far? _

**_Not bad. I'm still alive, aren't I? _**

_Yes, you are. But not for long._

**_Going to murder me? I hardly think you are able to do it. _**

_Why not? _

**_You don't know who I am. _**

_Oops. I forgot. Hmm… there's still another way._

**_And what is that? _**

_Ignore you and let you die of boredom._

**_That's a good one. _**

Ginny ignored his message, laughing to herself.

There was another message a few minutes later.

_**You'll be very disappointed once you hear this, but I'm afraid you have to know: I can safely assure you that I won't die of boredom and will still be alive tomorrow. It takes more than that to kill me.**_

* * *

A/N: So...what do you think? In reply to the question asked by_harrypotterchick4ever_: Yes, for this story, Luna is a Gryffindor. Sorry I failed to mention that earlier. In the book she's in Ravenclaw, right? Haha... I'm not very sure. I've to check it out. As for the secret Luna has... Well I'm sure after reading this chapter you know by now.

Oh, here are the reviewers I want to thank. Thank you for reviewing. Reading reviews makes me jump for joy. Haha...

**I'm Blond. James Blond., FireFantasma, harrypotterchick4ever, Phoenix Feather Queen, Tattered.Broken.Angel, queen-of-monkey-magic, NrefneyRulz, QueenThayet12990 **

Ok, keep those reviews coming! I LOVE reviews! Haha... See you!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

'_The moment in which everything new and eternal begins.'_

The hours passed relatively fast. Soon, Ginny was on her way to the pitch for Quidditch practice. Luna had told her that Blaise was not at all what he seemed to be. '_Never judge a book by its covers,' _Luna had said. _'It may not be what it seems to be.'_

Apparently, on the day Ginny had dropped her parchment, Luna had bumped into Blaise in a deserted corridor while running to class. Instead of mocking and sneering at her like Luna thought he would, he had bent down and picked up her belongings for her.

Luna, with a dreamy expression on her face, had told Ginny that he even helped her up, as she was lying sprawled on the floor.

Blaise had dusted the dirt off her bag and handed it to her. Luna had been so shocked by his courteous act; she snatched her bag and scampered away like a frightened bunny.

After brooding over it for a few days, Luna had written Blaise a _'Thank you'_ note and sent to him by owl post. Luna had not expected to get a reply, but she did...a few days later.

They chatted via owl post everyday for about two weeks when Blaise had asked her out. Ginny suddenly realised where Luna was when she had disappeared the numerous times – with Blaise.

_Her homework that weekend must have been done with Blaise's help too, _Ginny thought.

Luna was not the kind who finished her homework on time regularly.

Obviously, Luna was trying her best to convince her best friend that Blaise was not a 'big, bad wolf'. But Ginny maintained her decision that she would only change her opinion of Blaise when she got to meet him and see with her own eyes that he was not what she thought he was like.

However, Ginny did not know that this meeting was going to take place much earlier than she had expected.

* * *

Ginny walked over to the changing rooms. Harry, who was now the Captain of the team, was already there. Most of the team was already present but they waited a little longer for the latecomers. 

Harry gave a short talk before giving the instruction for everyone to change into his or her Quidditch gear.

Ginny went to the broom closet and took out her broom. It wasn't a very good broom, neither was it a lousy one. It was average. Her whole family had chipped in to buy this broom for her last birthday so it was very precious to her.

Taking her broom out, she tied her long auburn hair into a ponytail and took off from the ground.

It was so good to feel the wind rushing through her hair as she sped around the pitch. She was a Chaser on the team.

Though her modesty would never let her admit it, Ginny was one of the best players in the team and the best Chaser the Gryffindor team had. She was second only to Harry, who was playing the Seeker.

The Gryffindor team did a couple of warm up practices but before they could proceed any further, they were interrupted by, as Ron so aptly put it, 'a gaggle of green-clad Slytherins'.

Everyone on the team landed, except Ginny, who was happily flying in the air, oblivious to the disturbance on the ground.

When Ginny had turned the broom around, what she saw made her gasp in shock. From up there, she could see everything very clearly.

Ron was standing beside Harry and a dark-haired boy, whom Ginny recognized as Blaise, was standing beside Malfoy.

Malfoy (who was the Captain of the Slytherin team) and Harry were, judging from their expressions (and mouths) having a fight – with words. Ginny could see her brother turning beet red in anger at what probably Malfoy said.

Before Blaise could stop him, Ron had turned to his right and swung his fist directly at Malfoy's head from the side.

Malfoy, apparently, had not seen it coming as he was too busy arguing with Harry to notice the fist swinging towards him.

Ginny immediately flew towards the scene. As she flew, her shock had turned to boiling anger.

_How could he do that? That was so low-down. At least have the courage to fight the enemy when his attention is not somewhere else. _Ginny was beyond angry – she was furious, she was mad! _This is foul play, _she thought furiously as she landed on the ground.

All eyes turned to her at that moment. Ron took advantage of it to levitate a huge, jagged rock and to knock Malfoy out.

Ginny did not miss Malfoy's rare look of surprise (he rarely showed his emotions on his face) before he collapsed on the ground, blood streaming from the wound on his head.

The entire crowd started chattering with one another on what had just happened. Ron even allowed himself a tiny smile of satisfaction.

Ginny was disgusted, appalled at her brother's nauseating behaviour.

Ginny marched up to them, a murderous look on her face. The small crowd parted to make way for her.

Anyone could tell she was boiling with uncontainable rage and it would be best if they shut up and got out of her way.

"RONALD WEASLEY!" She yelled impressively, putting her hands on her hips. There was complete silence, at once.

"HOW DARE YOU? YOU ARE A SORRY EXCUSE FOR A BROTHER!"

"But...he...he...said..." Ron stuttered nervously. He had not really meant to do that. His anger had taken control just now. But Ron knew even his anger would be of no match to Ginny's rage right now.

"SHUT UP AND DON'T GIVE ME ANY EXCUSES!" The whole crowd winced at her yell.

Harry stepped forward, attempting to say something to save his best mate.

Before he could even open his mouth, Ginny prodded him roughly in his chest and snapped, "Don't get involved in this, Harry."

Immediately, Harry very wisely closed his mouth and stepped back. Ron looked at him helplessly, a pleading look on his face. Seeing this, the bunch of Slytherins snickered uncontrollably and even Blaise let an amused expression appear on his once indifferent features.

"YOU DISGUST ME!" Ginny shrieked angrily at Ron.

Ginny then strode towards Malfoy and tried picking him up. However, Malfoy's body was too heavy for her to carry allow.

Blaise snapped out of his trance and motioned for the Slytherins to stand back while he stepped forward to help her.

"What are you doing?" Ron asked.

"Bringing him to the Hospital Wing, you air-head!" Ginny hissed menacingly.

Ron was shocked. _Bring Malfoy to the Hospital Wing? _"But Ginny...that's Malfoy...and you can't…"

Before he had a chance to finish his sentence, a tightly clenched fist darted out and hit him directly on his nose. The loud cracking of the bone could be heard as blood spurted out in torrents.

The Slytherins howled loudly in laughter. But they quieted immediately once Blaise glared icily at them.

Ginny had absolutely enough of Ron's nonsense. Ignoring his cries of protest and pain, she picked up Malfoy's foot and with Blaise holding the upper part of Malfoy's body, she motioned for him to move.

Together, they made their way to the Hospital Wing like this.

* * *

Ginny was still fuming. Ron definitely deserved more than that punch. Ginny breathed in deeply, trying to be calm and keep her temper in check before she vented her anger on someone completely innocent. 

Blaise was no fool. Although he knew he could be a little talkative at times, he knew when to close his mouth, unlike the idiotic Weasel King.

He completely supported what Ginny did to Ron, but felt he deserved more than that.

Not wanting to be Ginny's punching bag (verbally and non-verbally) he intelligently kept his wisecracks to himself.

They walked in complete silence. Nothing could be heard but the shuffling of their feet.

Ginny having calmed down already, decided to break the silence.

"Well...Luna told me about...it already." Ginny started.

"I know." Blaise nodded, not surprised at all.

"How do you know? She told you?"

"Nope. I heard." Blaise said honestly.

"You mean 'eavesdropped'," Ginny replied, narrowing her eyes slightly as she realised what happened.

"Technically, yes." Blaise answered, shrugging. "I had to make sure you didn't hurt her in a mad rage or anything."

"What? Luna's my best friend." Ginny said defensively.

"Good point. But you never know it with Gryffindors."

"Just like you never know it with Slytherins." Ginny paused. "I didn't think anyone of you would help me carry this dead load to the Hospital Wing."

"Draco's my best mate." Blaise said simply. Looking at Ginny straight in the eye, she spoke, "Just to let you know, not all Slytherins are Death Eaters, we can't help it that some of us just choose to be."

Thinking about it, Ginny muttered, "I guess you are right."

Blaise's arrogance could not be held back for long. "Of course I'm right. I never make mistakes." He smiled smugly.

"To err is to be human, Za – Blaise."

Blaise raised his eyebrows. Other than that, he gave no other indication of his surprise at Ginny's words.

Just then, they reached the Hospital Wing. Blaise went into the office to alert Madam Pomfrey after he laid Malfoy on a bed.

Ginny sat down on one of the chairs and waited for Madam Pomfrey to come.

"Oh my..." Madam Pomfrey exclaimed as she bustled in.

Blaise sat on the next to Ginny. _How ironic. _Just yesterday she would have given him a good tongue-lashing if Blaise had sat beside her. Now, Ginny did not do anything but give him a small smile and calmly watch Madam Pomfrey attend to Malfoy.

"Draco's not going to like it," Blaise commented. "Tell your brother to watch out, he might be the next one on that bed."

"There's no need to tell him anything. He deserves it." Ginny replied shortly.

Blaise looked at Ginny in surprise. She just calmly looked straight ahead, her face devoid of all expression. He had not expected her to say that. Blaise made a mental note never to get on her bad side.

She has surprised him twice today. Now, that was an extraordinary feat. Blaise wasn't a person who was surprised easily.

"What made you punch your brother over Draco's injuries?" Blaise asked abruptly. "I mean you and Draco aren't exactly the best of friends..."

For a moment, Ginny was surprised at his question. But it was natural that he was curious over that. _Who wouldn't be?_

She answered truthfully, "I just thought it was really unfair. No matter what Malfoy said, it was still no excuse to hit him like that. What's more, if you really wanted to pick a fight, at least have the dignity to do it when your opponent is aware of it."

Blaise nodded. That made sense to him. "Are you going to be in trouble for what you did?"

Ginny was stunned into silence for a while. _A Slytherin, concerned for a Gryffindor? Something very weird was happening here... _She composed herself and replied confidently, "Nope. I think I can handle it. If Ron really wants to push his luck, I'll just send a letter to my mum. That usually takes care of everything. Once, she hears what happened, she'll be on my side."

Blaise opened his mouth to respond, but Madam Pomfrey told them that Malfoy was alright and could leave the Hospital Wing soon. He had to take a bottle of medicine every 8 hours for one week or he might suffer from concussion.

"Tell Mr Malfoy to come and collect it every 8 hours. He can't take it in advance because the medicine has to be freshly brewed." Said Madam Pomfrey and went to her office to take the first bottle.

Malfoy moved on the bed, having regained consciousness already.

"My head hurts..." He moaned.

Blaise walked over to the bed and updated his friend. "You can thank the Weasel King for that. He hit you on your head with a rock."

"Blaise, no _'Weasel'_ jokes in my presence, please. Even if it's my uncouth brother." Ginny said politely. After all, she had stayed to apologise to Malfoy on behalf of her idiotic brother. _Might as well start by being civilised._

"Who is that?" Malfoy asked, sitting up. "Oh, it you. Came to gloat at your brother's great achievement?"

"No actually. I came to apologise for my brother's disgusting behaviour." Ginny said calmly. "Phew...now that that's over and done with, I must be off. Get well soon, Malfoy. See you, Blaise."

_This must be the first time a Weasley ever apologised to a Malfoy. _Ginny thought, as she strode out without looking back. _This is definitely the right thing to do. Why do I always have to clear up my brother's mess?_

Ginny walked down the corridor. She decided to look for Luna and have their dinner together in the Kitchens. She really wanted to avoid Harry and Ron for the next few days.

"Ginny!" A voice called, stopping her in her tracks.

She turned.

Blaise was there. "Just wanted to apol -"

"There's no need. I understand." Ginny cut in, knowing what Blaise was going to say. "I expected worst from a Malfoy. Anyway, I've to go."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. See you around!" With that, Ginny quickly walked away.

* * *

Having dinner in the Kitchens was a good idea because Ginny found out from Hermione, who totally approved of Ginny's actions, that Ron was looking for her. The Kitchen was also a good place for private conversations. No one heard what you were talking about unless you counted the House Elves. 

Ginny recounted the whole incident, including her talk with Blaise, over dinner to Luna. After dinner, they snuck back into the dormitories without anyone noticing. Luckily, boys were not allowed to enter the girls' dormitories, or Ron would have easily confronted Ginny.

* * *

Draco Malfoy walked into his private dormitories after dinner. Blaise had told him what had occurred after he passed out. He was filled with outrage. _How dare that Weasel hit him? He was going to pay for it. _

Draco also found out from Blaise that little Weaselette had punched her brother over his injuries. That was surprising. Why had she done that? He wasn't sure.

His head hurt. The throbbing in his head gave him a bad migraine. This was the worst day ever. He had also overheard what the Weasley said to Blaise before she left. _I expected worst from a Malfoy... _Was he really that mean? So much so that she only expected the worst from him? His confusion over Ginny's actions made him dizzier, which did not help his bad headache at all.

Draco plopped gracefully onto his bed and drank the bottle of potion in a gulp. His hazy vision cleared and the throbbing in his temples reduced. This whole day was very strange. _Had the earth stopped spinning? _

He took out his parchment and started writing. Somehow, the recipient of his messages was the only person, besides Blaise, that seemed to understand him and how he felt. She was always there for him when he needed advice or just someone to talk to.

**_

* * *

Have you ever felt like you can't seem to control whatever that's happening around you and cannot make head or tail of it?_** Ginny read. 

_Yes, sometimes that just happens. Don't worry; you are not the only one that goes through it. Look on the bright side, at least you are still alive after my attempt on your life. _

**_Wow, I'm feeling so happy and chirpy by just thinking about it. _**

_Your sense of humor really needs a work on, you know..._

**_Really? I always thought I was terribly funny._**

_Poor thing. Who was the one who led you to believe that? He must have been playing a joke on you._

**_No one dares to play jokes on me, I'm afraid. They are all scared that I might bite off their heads._**

_Oh my. You must be horrifying. But how can clowns bite off heads? Are their teeth that sharp? They are supposed to be harmless..._

**_Excuse me, I'm far from being a clown._**

_But I was always under the impression that you are one...how could I be wrong?_

Ginny waited for a reply as she lay on her bed at night, watching Luna send a letter to Blaise by owl post. Those two just could not get enough of each other. She checked her parchment a few minutes later, no reply. After about fifteen to twenty minutes, there still wasn't a reply. _What happened? _Finally, she could not wait anymore. Ginny wrote.

_What happened? Are you alright?_

There still was no reply for another ten minutes. Just as Ginny was about to write again, a message appeared.

_**Yes, I'**__**m fine. **_

_What happened?_

**_I was searching through my whole room for a headache cure. Do I sense somebody's concern? _**

_Take a cool shower and turn in early. It helps with the headache. _Ginny wrote, ignoring his question.

**_I will try that then. _**

_Alright. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Night._

Ginny put away her quill and tucked the parchment under her pillow. She did not want anyone seeing it besides Luna.

"I'm turning in, Luna. Goodnight."

"Me too. Goodnight." Luna yawned.

* * *

A/N: Here's Chapter 6! Here are all the reviewers. Oh yeah, I just wrote this Oneshot called Rays of Sunshine through a Storm also on Draco/Ginny, so I'll be really glad if you could check it out and leave a review! Thanks for reviewing! You don't know how much you have inspired me to keep writing. 

**nilber, I'm Blond. James Blond., Phoenix Feather Queen, SlytherinSexyGodess, harrypotterchick4ever, Just call me Stevie., Queen Thayet**

Ok, you know what I'm going to say next, right? Of course you do... haha. But I'm saying it anyway...please review! Hope you liked this chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

'_A relationship is like a rose. _

_How long it lasts, no one knows._

_Love can erase an awful past, _

_Love can be yours, you'll see at last_

_To feel that love, it makes you sigh,_

_To have leave, you rather die._

_You hope you have found that special rose_

_Because you love and care for the one you chose.'_

It was weeks after the Quidditch incident. Ginny was glad the whole thing had blown over. The day after the Quidditch incident was a nightmare.

Horrible rumors were circulating around the whole school. Everywhere Ginny went, whispers followed her. Luna had been kind and brave enough to endure the whole ordeal with her. For that, she was immensely grateful.

Not only that, Ron and Pansy Parkinson had taken to yelling at her. Ron had yelled at her in the Gryffindor common room. She wanted to scold him back for being an utter prat. Luckily for him, Hermione had stepped in and dragged him back to his dormitories.

Needless to say, the whole castle was abuzz with news on that the next day. Gryffindors could be such big mouths sometimes.

When Parkinson yelled, no, screeched actually, at her, it was way better because she could retaliate back without having to hit her brother again. She felt a tinge of guilt when she had hit him, but he totally deserved it.

She was walking out from class when Parkinson purposely bumped into her, hard. Ginny did not want to cause any more trouble for fear of more rumors, so she glared at Parkinson and walked away.

But a skinny, bony stopped her. Ginny turned around to see Parkinson pointing her wand at her.

Within a split second, Ginny ducked, which was lucky because Parkinson aimed a curse at her.

Ginny pulled out her wand swiftly. _If Parkinson wants it, then she's got it, _Ginny thought furiously. She did not want to fight but she could not just let Parkinson get away just like that.

The corridor was empty. Everybody was at lunch already.

"This is what you get for laying your dirty paws on my Drakie," she snarled angrily.

They circled each other carefully. Apparently, she had heard the rumors about Draco and Ginny and was not too pleased about it.

"Paws? Please..." Ginny said, with a mocking smile on her face. There was no way Parkinson could beat her at dueling. "Why don't you look in the mirror? I'm not the one with a pug face."

Parkinson could not take it anymore. She opened her excessive-lipstick covered mouth to utter a spell.

"_Expelliarmus!" _A cool voice cut in before the words left her mouth. Parkinson's wand flew out of her hand.

Both girls turned around. It was Blaise.

"Go for lunch, Pansy. Don't force me to put you in detention," said Blaise (he was a prefect). He returned Parkinson's wand back to her.

With a scowl, she left, stomping her feet loudly against the floor. Ginny watched her go quietly.

"Thanks." Ginny said to Blaise once Parkinson was out of earshot, while stowing her wand back into her pocket.

"No problem," he replied.

Ginny was glad he saved her from a confrontation with Parkinson. Not that she was scared or anything, but she had better things to do than to duel with a bimbo over Draco Malfoy.

The next time Ginny met Blaise was a day when she had finished her dinner. Ginny and Luna were walking up an empty flight of stairs, chatting animatedly about the Halloween party that Dumbledore agreed to hold to promote inter-house unity.

There would be four different parties. Each held by one House. For that evening, anyone could enter any House to join the party. But there was a catch. To enter the House's party, you had to receive an invitation from someone in that House first.

"So what kind of party do you think Gryffindor will hold?" Luna asked excitedly. Dumbledore had just broken the news to them at dinner.

"Don't know." Ginny shrugged. "If Fred and George were here, knowing them, it would have lots of good food and not to mention good laughs - mostly at their tricks."

"Yeah...it sure is boring with them out of school..." Luna sighed.

"You bet. Last time -"

"Ginny! Luna!" Blaise called out to them.

Both of them turned.

"Hey..." Blaise caught up with them. "Ginny? Could you do me a favour? Go to the Hospital Wing now and collect the potion for Draco. It's his last dose and if he misses it, he will have to take the whole course of potions again."

"Aren't _you _supposed to be doing it for Malfoy?" Ginny questioned.

"That was until I saw my little sweetheart over here," said Blaise with a huge smile on his face. He linked his arms with Luna and leaned close to her, giving her a kiss on her cheek.

Luna giggled and blushed, leaning back into Blaise's chest.

"Get a room..." Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Please, Ginny? Please, please, please, please, please..." Luna begged.

Ginny was at a lost of what to do. She knew if she didn't do it, Luna would be very disappointed. Plus, Luna had endured all the gossip and taunts with her after the Quidditch incident.

If she did it, she had to enter Malfoy's private dormitories (he was Head Boy) and somehow pass it to him. It was like going into the fiery depths of Hell itself.

Ginny sighed. "Alright," she relented. "Tell me what I've to do." After this, she would not owe Luna a favour anymore.

For some unknown reason, Blaise started smirking. "Once you get the potion from Madam Pomfrey, take the Western staircase to the fourth level. Turn right and walk straight down. You'll see a painting of some dragons flying. The password is _'Draconis'. _Tell the dragons the password and they will let you in."

"Okay..." Ginny said uncertainly. "Won't Malfoy be upset with you for telling me the password to his dormitories?"

"Nope. I'm sure he wouldn't mind at all." Blaise said, smirking broadly. "I'm actually doing him a big favour..." The last part came out in an incoherent mumble, though.

"What? Didn't catch the last part."

"Nothing...nothing..."

Ginny narrowed her eyes. "You are not planning anything, are you?"

"We are friends now, remember? You could even say good friends. I won't do anything to harm you."

Ginny snorted in disbelief. But she turned in the direction of the Hospital Wing. "I'll take your word for it, then. See you later in the dormitories, Luna! Bye, Blaise!"

She gave them a little wave before heading to her destination.

Ginny opened the doors to the Hospital Wing. "Madam Pomfrey?" She called.

Ginny walked into the office situated right at the back of the Hospital Wing. "Madam Pomfrey?"

"Yes, dear." Came the answer. "I'm in the back room."

Ginny looked to her left. She saw Madam Pomfrey waving to her from the inside of the back room. The back room was for brewing the healing potions that she might need for healing the students.

There were shelves of potions. Different coloured potions sat on different shelves. It was a rainbow of colour. Ginny's dream was to become a Healer when she grew up. She was not too bad at healing, so she hopedit would come true.

"I'm here to collect Draco Malfoy's potion." Ginny stated.

"Oh. It's right here." Madam Pomfrey reached out and took a small vial containing a pale blue liquid from her shelf and handed it to Ginny.

"Thanks," said Ginny, walking out of the Hospital Wing. She had no idea why she agreed to bring Malfoy's potion to him. _I hope I don't regret it_, she thought. Although, she had the feeling she would.

She followed Blaise's instructions and reached the painting of the dragons in no time. Ginny had no clue as to what to do now. _Go in or knock till he comes out? What if he's not inside in the first place? _

Taking a deep, steady breath, she muttered the password. An emerald green dragon in the painting stared at her carefully, and then it swung the painting open. _How fitting... Into the dragon's den I go..._

Ginny went in. The painting-door closed soundlessly behind her. She felt trapped. Ginny desperately wanted to get away from here, but she had to give Malfoy the potion first.

The room was twice as big as her dormitories. She guessed that was the perks of being the Head Boy. The room was decorated in dark green, matching the colour of the dragon in the painting. Even the bed sheets were a dark green too.

An oak wood table and chair sat neatly in the corner of the room. There were a few comfy green couches placed around the room. Ginny had to admit; Malfoy had good taste in furniture.

Looking around, she saw that there was no one in the room. "Hello?" She called out.

Ginny heard the faint sounds of a shower coming from behind a door that was to her right. _Oh my goodness, _she thought frantically. _He must have been bathing! I hope he comes out decently dressed! Please don't come out in the nude... Please don't come out in the... Please don't come out in the nude... Please- _

The door swung open.

"Thank goodness..." Ginny breathed a sigh in relief.

Malfoy came out, wearing a white shirt and a pair of shorts. His blonde hair was still wet.

_Phew... _Ginny thought. _Or I would have been scarred for life..._

Malfoy's steel grey eyes ran over her. "What are you doing here?"

Ginny swallowed. That did not sound too friendly. Deciding to get to the point, she said, " Blaise asked me to pass this to you becaus- never mind." Ginny handed him the vial of potion. _Oh no! I almost blurted it out! _

Ginny's fingers gently brushed his as she handed him the vial. A chill ran down her spine. She looked at Malfoy. His expression gave no indication that anything out of the ordinary had happened. Usually, he would have mocked her and say something about touching a 'mudblood lover', but this time, he was silent.

"Because Blaise got distracted by the long blonde hair of Luna Lovegood and decided to hang out with her, am I right?" Malfoy was still holding onto the vial of potion.

"You know?" Ginny asked, stunned. Malfoy did not say anything, so she took it for a 'yes'. "And you don't mind?"

"Weasley, do you take me for a person who has too much time, so much so I become personally in charge of my best friend's life?"

"No..." Ginny answered. "You are supposed to drink that, by the way..." Ginny pointed to the bottle in Malfoy's hands.

"How do I know you haven't poisoned it or something? Do the dirty work for Pothead and Weasel King..."

Ginny frowned at the name Malfoy called her brother. "Suit yourself then. By the way, there are a lot of other people who might need the potion, so don't drink Madam Pomfrey's whole stock up."

Malfoy glared at her icily, before downing the entire potion in one gulp.

Ginny gave him a smug smile, before turning on her heel and walking out of Malfoy's dormitories. She walked out of the painting-door and stood in the corridor.

"Bye," said Ginny, being polite as usual.

Without saying anything, Malfoy closed the painting-door right in front of Ginny. Pondering what just happened, Ginny made her way back to her dormitories.

* * *

"I can't believe it! Who does that ferret think he is?" An angry voice drifted out from behind the boys' dormitories. 

Ginny was heading up to her dormitories when she heard her brother's crazed ranting.

The castle was abuzz with news again. This time, it was not about her. It was about Ron. In the morning, when Ginny was eating her breakfast, Ron received a letter. It was a Howler. So, the whole school had to endure the banshee-like shrieks on how badly behaved Ron was and how stupid he was for the whole time they were in the Great Hall.

The screeching did not last for five or ten minutes like everyone hoped. It went on for the whole morning. Sometimes, it repeated itself over and over again.

Some people even lost their appetite and went through the morning without breakfast. So, most students were very grumpy that morning. Everyone was very irritated and annoyed at Ron for causing such a disruption in the early hours of the morning.

The only ones that were happy were Draco Malfoy and his best friend Blaise Zabini. Obviously, they were the ones that planned it. But Ginny did not tell anyone, except Luna, who already knew who the culprits were.

When Ron heard what the Howler had to say about him in front of the whole school, he turned as red as a beetroot and tried to hide his face under the table in shame. It did not really help him much. The whole school was angry with him for the disruption.

Even the teachers were angry with Ron. They tried to get rid of the Howler but in vain. Ron spent the whole day dodging random spells from irritated students and enduring the hours of teachers' lecture and glares.

That was not it. Malfoy and Blaise also somehow managed to jinx Ron's broom, so during Quidditch practice; the broom swerved and jerked Ron around in the air for a good hour before finally throwing him off into the pond. When he was in the air, no one dared to approach him for fear of getting hit by the broom.

In the pond, the Giant Squid mistook him for a big piece of bread and tried to eat him whole. Luckily for Ron, his wand accidentally poked the Giant Squid in the eye. The Giant Squid then threw him out onto the hard ground.

From there, Harry brought him to Madam Pomfrey, who checked Ron said that there was nothing wrong with him and sent him back to his dormitories wet. Hermione was kind enough to heal Ron's slight flu or he would have to go to class the next day sniffling loudly.

Ginny almost felt sorry from Ron. _Almost. _At least he did not end up in the Hospital Wing, like Malfoy did.

Ginny entered the room. _Ahh... Peace and quiet... _Ron was yelling his head off in the boys' dormitories, making everyone all the more annoyed. Sometimes, she didn't know how Harry and Hermione could tolerate him and all his nonsense.

She took out her parchment and started writing a message. She liked talking to him.

_Today was terribly entertaining, don't you think?_ She wrote.

**_Exceptionally. I personally liked the part where Weasley was mistaken as a piece of bread and almost got eaten by the Giant Squid. _**

_How do you know about it? Only the Gryffindor Quidditch team was there..._

**_Everyone knows about it, my dear. Unless you are either deaf or stupid. _**

_I'm neither, I'm afraid. _

_**How do you know? Stupid people usually don't know they are stupid. **_

_Just like arrogant people. They usually don't know how stuck-up they are. _

_**Are you referring to me?**_

_Glad you got the hint. Most people can't do that. _

_**I'm not like most people. **_

_Okay... I'm not going to argue with you over that. _

_**That means you agree?**_

_On?_

_**That I'm not like most people. **_

_Yes...you have something up your sleeve, don't you?_

**_Nope. I don't have anything up my sleeve. Just a few specks of dust, if that counts as something._**

_You know what I mean. _

_**Yes, I do. And the answer is still 'no'. Although I find it perfectly reasonable that I'm special to you. **_

_I didn't say that! _

_**Yes, you didn't say that. But you implied.**_

_Right. And when did I do so? Perhaps in your overly active imagination? _

_**No, I certainly did not imagine it. I'm not one that tends to daydream. Well, you really must know, it was just a few minutes ago.**_

_Be more specific. _

_**Do you expect me to tell you the seconds too? **_

_No. Stop being such a prat and tell me what I said. _

_**If you insist. You said that I'm not like most people. So you are implying that I'm special.**_

_What?_

_**Must I explain everything to you? I can't help it if your infantile brain cannot process these simple facts properly.**_

_You do know that you are being horribly insulting, right?_

_**I was? Never knew that.**_

_Look whose 'infantile brain cannot process these simple facts properly' now._

_**Yeah... that's really witty.**_

_I know. Thank you._

_**Welcome.**_

_Sorry, I've to go. My brother's being very irritating._

_**It's no problem.**_

_Bye..._

Ginny kept her parchment. Ron was still shouting loudly and she had enough. She crossed over to the boys' dormitories in a matter of seconds.

"Ron, it says here 'Boys Dormitories', not 'Dormitories for the Barbaric and Insane'." Ginny said coolly, leaning against the doorframe. Hermione, who was sitting on Harry's bed reading, stifled a giggle. Even Harry was struggling not to laugh. Ginny really pitied them.

"You won't be so calm if it happened to you." Ron stopped yelling and snarled at Ginny.

"That's probably true." Ginny stroked her chin as though contemplating it. "But I would be even more hysterical if mum finds out. If that's the case, I would probably be screaming louder than you were."

"You wouldn't dare." Ron narrowed his eyes.

"Try me." Ginny challenged.

Ron closed his mouth. He had no doubts she would do it.

"Well, it's getting late. I must go to bed. Goodnight." Ginny said. "You have my sympathies." Ginny motioned to Harry and Hermione.

Then, she strode off to her dormitories to sleep, missing the admiring looks that some Gryffindors gave her. Ron was easily the most unpopular of all the Weasleys. Fred and George even managed to beat Ron when it came to popularity.

_I wonder why... _Ginny thought dryly before closing her eyes.

* * *

A/N: Next, the Halloween party! In this chapter, I couldn't resist making Ron seem like a spoiled brat. Haha... it was really fun. He's not that bad, actually... 

Oh, here are all my honoured reviewers:

_**MorganisM-Lve, FireFantasma, Phoenix Feather Queen, harrypotterchick4ever, Tattered.Broken.Angel, NrefneyRulz, SlytherinSexyGodess, QueenThayet, Tomsgirl2005**_

Okay, the party's next! Review!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

'_Sometimes, when you look back on a situation, you realize it wasn't all you thought it was. A beautiful girl walked into your life. You fell in love. Or did you? Maybe it was only a childish infatuation, or maybe just a brief moment of vanity.'_

"Ginny, hurry up!" Luna cried, swiftly tucking the Invisibility Cloak they had borrowed from Blaise into her backpack.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Ginny ran behind Luna. She had to make sure that no one had seen what they did.

Harry had given them the most honoured task of sneaking into Hogsmeade and buying some of the food there for the Halloween party that was taking place that evening. The normal Halloween feast that they had every year would be cancelled, taken place by the party.

They wanted to borrow the Invisibility Cloak from him, but he needed the Cloak too. Luckily, Blaise came to the rescue and graciously offered to lend one to them.

Strangely, when Ginny was using the Cloak, she noticed it had a certain scent. It was a light and sweet scent, which Ginny found she liked very much. She was quite sure it did not belong to Blaise.

They ran through the dark tunnel. Lining the tunnel was spider webs, but Ginny and Luna did not stop to look. They were in a rush. It was already in the late afternoon and the food for the party was not ready yet.

Dumbledore said that this party was to promote inter-house unity, but the way Ginny saw it, it was not helping at all. Instead of promoting inter-house unity, this event was causing more competition between the Houses.

Every House wanted to hold the best party and the competition was so fierce that 'accidents' had occurred in the middle of the corridors. Ginny was not looking forward to that evening at all. As a matter of fact, she was dreading the whole ordeal. Blaise had invited them to the Slytherin's party.

At first, Ginny had politely declined and volunteered to help Hermione (she was in-charge) with the party. When they heard that, Blaise and Luna insisted and forced Ginny to attend it, despite all her excuses and complains.

Thankfully, it was a masquerade, so she could wear a mask to hide her face. She certainly did not want to face Ron if he had found out she had been to the Slytherin's party.

She also did not want to see Parkinson's expression if she knew Ginny was going. It would probably end up in a fight.

Ginny knew she was making a fool out of herself. She did not even have something to wear yet. She wondered what were the chances of trying to convince Luna that she was not needed there. _Zero, _Ginny thought sourly.

For some reason, Blaise and Luna were really insistent on her going. If it weren't Luna, she would have thought they were going to play a prank on her or something. But she knew Luna would never do that to her.

Soon, they reached a dusty ladder. Ginny and Luna climbed it slowly; afraid it might creak and alert the people of the secret passageway beneath. She could feel the dust tickling her nose. Silently, she closed her eyes and continued climbing, trying very hard not to sneeze.

They pushed the trapdoor open cautiously, checking to see if anyone was there first. No one was around, so they quickly leapt out and closed the door. Aware of the voices talking in the next room, Luna and Ginny sneaked stealthily to the exit. _What if they got caught sneaking into Hogsmeade? _

When they made it out of the door, Ginny let out a sigh of relief. She had not even been aware that she was holding her breath.

"Remind me to tell Harry I'm never doing that again," Luna told Ginny, already starting to walk towards their destination.

The main reason why they were doing all this was because everyone wanted to be dressed and ready for the party in the evening. So, the job was inconsiderately pushed to Ginny and Luna.

"What do we need?" Ginny asked.

Luna took the list of food and drinks out of her pocket and handed it to Ginny. It was written in Hermione's neat handwriting.

_List of food and drinks needed: _

_10 bottles of butterbeer_

_2 sacks of assorted candy of your choice _

_3 bags of chips_

_5 bottles of fruit punch_

_4 bags full of chocolate_

_5 boxes of pumpkin cakes_

_4 trays of custard tarts_

_5 trays of assorted cookies_

_3 boxes of sandwiches _

_8 boxes of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans _

_6 tubs of ice cream_

The list when on and on. Ginny sighed wearily and trudged towards the first shop. After about two hours of frenzied shopping, they were finally done. They shrunk the shopping bags and put them into the backpack Luna brought. _Thank goodness for magic. _

"We have to get back now," Ginny reminded Luna as they walked down a street in Hogsmeade.

"I know..."

Ginny walked beside Luna. "Have pity on me... Can I have some food please?" A voice said beside them.

Ginny looked down. There, sitting on the floor, was an old lady. All her hair was white and her clothes were ragged and torn. Marks made from dirt and mud marked her wrinkled face.

"How do you know we have food?" Ginny answered curiously. As far as she knew, all the shopping bags were shrunk and put in Luna's backpack.

"Food…I need food…" The old lady repeated, her dark blue eyes staring dully at Ginny.

Ginny and Luna looked at each other. They exchanged similar glances and came upon a decision.

"Here..." Luna said softly, her light blue eyes full of pity for the old lady who was begging on the streets. She opened her backpack and took out one box of sandwiches. Ginny enlarged it to its normal size and handed it to the lady.

Her small, wrinkly smile revealed that some teeth were missing. The box of sandwiches was enough to last her about two weeks or so.

"Both of you were kind enough to give me some food even though it was for the Halloween party you are holding," said the lady.

"H-how did you know about the party?" Ginny asked, cautiously stepping a little backwards at the same time and pulling Luna with her.

"Don't be frightened, my dears," The lady said, her voice strangely soothing. "I can read minds... As a reward for giving an old beggar some f-"

"Thank you, but we don't want any reward," Ginny cut in quickly.

"Yeah...it's not necessary..." Luna added. "Wait, you can read minds?" She asked in disbelief.

"It's a rare skill I was born with..." The old lady answered.

The lady took her wrinkled hand out of her old and torn robes and waved her wand. At once, two boxes appeared next to Ginny and Luna.

"These dresses were meant to be for my two daughters' wedding. But before the wedding, they abandoned me here and left for Italy with their husbands, taking my money with them. You should take them." The lady said, a single drop of tear rolling down from her eye.

"No... We can't just take it. It must mean a lot to you..." Luna said.

"Yeah... Since it's for your daughters' wedding and everything," said Ginny.

"They are not my daughters anymore," She said fiercely. "Just make an old lady happy by taking it. It's brand new, anyway. I'm sure your boyfriend would love to see you in it." The lady motioned at Luna, who was blushing at the thought of Blaise being her boyfriend.

"But-" Ginny started.

"Please... just take it...it brings back many bad memories anyway...please..." The lady pleaded.

Ginny and Luna exchanged helpless glances. Finally, Luna relented. "Alright then..."

The lady grinned her toothless grin and motioned for them to pick up the packages. "You two should hurry along now...and get ready for the party. Have a good time."

She was right. They needed to get back now. "How can we ever thank you?" Ginny asked.

"By taking it and having fun tonight," she replied seriously.

"Thank you," Luna and Ginny said almost at the same time.

Ginny turned back as they walked away. "By the way, may I ask what's your name?"

"Mendiant." She replied, her dark blue eyes seeming to look right into Ginny. "You can call me Mendiant."

"Mendiant." Ginny muttered under her breath as Luna and her made their way back through the tunnel to Hogwarts.

* * *

"I don't believe my eyes," Ginny murmured as she fingered the dress that the lady gave them. She looked into the mirror. 

The dress was a cream, off-white colour. It was made out of sleek, shiny material that shimmered like water. The straps of the dress were thin and long. The dress was made of only a long sheet of satin-like material, wrapping around Ginny.

The material clung onto her comfortably, not too tight or loose, showing off her slim figure. A long trail of cloth elegantly trailed behind her as she walked. It was decorated simply with sequins and beads that reflected the light and glittered beautifully.

Luna was also wearing her dress. Hers was a very light shade of blue, matching her blonde hair. It had a jeweled center brooch and beading throughout bodice.

Before they had put the dresses on, Ginny had cast several charms to see if the dresses were jinxed. The spells found nothing wrong with it so it seemed like they were safe to use it.

To their surprise, they found out that the masks that came with the dresses were charmed. When they wore it, the magic in the mask would protect their identity. Luna did not really need it. However, Ginny did.

"Yeah..." Luna looked at their reflections dreamily. "We look like Greek Goddesses or something..."

"Hurry, we have got only fifteen minutes till it starts," Ginny said, snapping out of it.

After fifteen minutes, they were ready. Ginny had her hair up in a simple bun, with some strands of auburn hair framing her face. Luna just left her hair down.

They went out of the portrait-door when no one was looking and met Blaise at the entrance of the Great Hall.

"Looking lovely, my ladies." Blaise greeted them and extended a hand to Luna.

Luna took his hand in her and Blaise led the way to the Slytherin common room. Ginny felt a little out of place. It was weird having to see her best friend and what was becoming to be a good friend of hers, holding hands.

Luna was glad Ginny did not back out and decide not to go with her. She did not know what she would do if Ginny had not accompanied her. She always found comfort in Ginny and they were as close, or if not, closer than siblings.

Some time later, they reached the Slytherin common room. There, Blaise paused for a moment to put on his mask, which was a simple black one that went very well with his suit. Ginny and Luna put on theirs too.

Then, Blaise muttered the password and led them into the Slytherin common room.

_If only Ron could see me now, _Ginny thought sardonically as she entered the common room.

Ginny had to admit; the decorations were much better than Gryffindor. Black and orange drapes were hung. Fake bats and mice adorned the ceilings and walls.

The Slytherin common room was quite similar to the Gryffindor common room except that the Slytherin common room seemed chillier and colder. The lights were dimly lit and slow dancing music was played.

Beside Ginny, Blaise asked Luna, " May I have this dance?"

Luna nodded shyly and took his outstretched hand. Blaise then led her to the dance floor. Once again, Ginny was left alone.

Making her way to the refreshment area, she saw none other than Pansy Parkinson, parading around in a scantily clad dress. It was obvious that it was Parkinson even with the red mask on because no one could dress as outrageously as her.

Seriously, Ginny thought that she looked like she had just gone through a fierce catfight. The rips and tears gave it all away.

Fighting down the urge to laugh, she reached for a cup and poured herself some drinks from a pitcher. There were so many pitchers; she did not know what they contained. So, she decided to try her luck and see what she got.

Ginny put the cup to her lips. The strong smell of alcohol filled her nose. Almost reeling backwards, she coughed a little, choking on its fumes.

She reached for her wand and uttered the Vanishing Spell to vanish the awful contents of the blood-red coloured drink in her cup.

Looking around and trying to look inconspicuous at the same time, Ginny realised that almost everyone was drinking it.

One crazy person even poured a whole pitcher full of it into his mouth. Some of the drink overflowed out of his mouth, but he still continued drinking, earning cheers from the people egging him on.

Ginny grimaced at turned away. From where she was standing, he looked like a vampire who had swallowed too much blood and was choking it out. _Gross… _

Suddenly, she felt a hard tug on her hand. Turning around, she saw a boy kneeling on the floor beside her. His hand was still in hers, so she tugged it away.

His blonde hair was in a mess and he was swaying uncontrollably, looking like he was about to fall onto the floor any moment. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. Ginny could get a whiff of him, he smelt of alcohol. Obviously, he was drunk. If he wasn't drunk, he was actually quite handsome.

He grabbed her hand again. Ginny tried to pull her hand away, but he clung onto her tightly.

"Let go of me!" Ginny growled.

"Not until you hear what I've to say first!" He insisted, holding onto her hand even tighter.

"Let go of me now! You have no right to hold me like that!" Ginny repeated angrily.

By now, everyone in the room was watching them. They stood quietly, wondering what the outcome would be like.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny saw Blaise letting go of Luna's hand and marching forward and squeezing through the crowd to aid her.

Ginny tried to tug her hand away again, but in vain. This boy had a vice-like grip. She did not give up. Ginny continued trying to free her hand but his next words rendered her speechless and stunned.

"Will you marry me?" The boy asked, kneeling on one knee now.

Even Blaise stopped dead in his tracks in shock, unmoving. Everyone in the room held their breath. The air was thick with tension.

"What?" Ginny answered, flabbergasted.

"Will you marry me?" He repeated.

"No! In your dreams!" Ginny snarled, managing to move her mouth at last. "Definitely not! The last time I checked, I did not even know you existed, you moron!" Anger fuelling her, Ginny yanked her hand out of his grip and walked away from him.

When she was satisfied with the distance between them, she turned around and looked at him. _Did he think that just after the idiotic sentence she would sleep with him? I think not! She was not that type of girl. _

He was still on the floor, swaying even more vigorously now. Then, with a loud _'THUD!'_ he fell to the floor, unconscious.

Everything them back to normal. The silence was gone and the crowd dissipated. Some students helped to drag the boy away.

Blaise and Luna came up to her.

"Are you alright?" Luna asked, her concern etched on her face.

"Yeah...I'm fine," Ginny replied.

"I thought you handled it well," Blaise commented. "I was about to interfere when he said those words. Anyway, don't mind him. At all parties Lucas's always like that."

"Really?" said Ginny. "What do the other girls say to him?"

"Don't know." Blaise shrugged. "Happened too many times, so I don't bother to count. But, if I'm not mistaken, you are the first one who 'rejected' his marriage proposal."

"Gross." Luna frowned.

"Is there anything else to drink besides alcohol?" Ginny asked. "From what I can see, that's the only thing everyone is drinking."

"It's 1822 Firewhisky," said Blaise. "It's more alcoholic than the ones they have in Hogsmeade. Personally, I find it disgusting. I'm one of the few that does, though. I think the water is in the green pitcher."

"How did they get their hands on it in the first place?" Luna asked.

"Pansy supplied. Her father doesn't really care what she does as long as it doesn't affect him," said Blaise. "You are feeling alright?" He asked Ginny.

"Fine. Why don't you two go and dance, I'll be fine."

"Okay, I'll be nearby. If anything happens, just call out for me. Maybe that crackpot will come back and I might get to hit him," Blaise added jokingly.

"Don't worry. We'll leave soon..." Luna assured Ginny before going off with Blaise to the dance floor again.

Ginny made her way to the refreshment area again and found the green pitcher. Pouring it into the cup, she sniffed it to confirm that it was water before drinking it.

"Drakie!" Parkinson called from behind Ginny. "Where are you? I've been looking everywhere for you."

Ginny turned around. Parkinson was there, scanning the crowd for Malfoy. She saw Blaise flinching at the sound of her voice.

"Drakie!" Parkinson called again. She started to move in Ginny's direction.

A brown-haired boy near Ginny tensed. Parkinson was coming nearer. Then he turned to Ginny.

"Would you like to dance?" He asked.

His voice sounded strangely familiar... Ginny was sure she had heard it before. She was not sure whether to accept his offer. Dancing was without doubt better than standing alone and looking like a fool. But she hardly knew him...

Swallowing, she nodded uncertainly and let him lead her out to the dance floor. Ginny could hear amused sniggers coming from Luna and Blaise. Ignoring them, she sent a sharp glare before starting to dance.

Parkinson looked at the dancing pair for a moment, clearly checking if it was the 'Drakie' that she was looking for, before walking away.

She was determined to enjoy herself that evening. Ginny ran her eyes over the boy who was now staring at her. Somehow, she sensed that she had met or in some way knew this boy. It was an unnerving feeling.

In her mind, Ginny ran through everybody she knew. None of them their features fitted this boy. _How peculiar... _He had light brown hair and was a little taller than Ginny. What was most surprising, were his eyes.

They were a stunning shade of light molten silver. In his left iris, was a tiny splinter of light blue. Hardly noticeable, but quite obvious if you looked into his eyes carefully: which was what Ginny was doing now.

"What's your name?" Ginny blurted out.

His eyes jumped to hers. "Now that's not important, is it?" He answered smoothly.

"I guess not," Ginny shrugged. She couldn't tell anyone here her name, so she was just lucky he didn't answer. Or she would have to tell hers too.

His hand on her waist seemed like it was perfectly made to fit there. They danced in comfortable silence. It was almost peaceful. Ginny did not know what it was, but something about this boy made her feel so secure and at ease.

Unexpectedly, he stopped dancing. Ginny looked up, confused. Then she realised that the song was over. His expression was completely blank. But when Ginny looked into his eyes, she saw something different. _Was it amusement dancing in his eyes? _

Blaise came over, with Luna holding his hand.

With an amused smirk on his face, he noted to the boy, "Ahh... I see you have met our darling little Weaselette."

* * *

A/N: Heehee... I left a cliffhanger. I'm evil, I know... Hmm... Come to think of it, even my mum told me that a few times. Heehee... 

I was thinking of doing a little poll to, sort of, engage my readers and all that stuff. Ok, here's the question. I don't know if there will be any rewards (like extra previews or something like that), I have not decided, or anything like that, but if I decide to, I'll try to contact the people who guessed the correct answer. It would be best if you logged in when you leave the review so I can contact you easily. Okay, enough of my babbling, here's the question:

**Who is the masked boy that Ginny danced with? **

I shall be sweet and nice. Here's a little piece of advice. The answer is really obvious. Like, hmm... how do I say it without giving away too much... try to think simple. The answer should come to you.

Here are my nice, sweet reviewers who reviewed for Chapter 7:

**_FireFantasma, QueenThayet, missMANNEQUINx, MorganisM-Lve, harrypotterchick4ever, Phoenix Feather Queen, SlytherinSexyGodess, Tattered.Broken.Angel, ajma, Tomsgirl2005._**

Oh my, I almost forgot. I have created this 'MSN Space' thing; it's where I might be posting previews of chapters and additional stuff. The link is on my profile page as 'homepage'.

This is the longest author's note (and longest chapter too) I have written. Haha...Got to go. I'll write the next chapter soon. Review people, review!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

'_Ever watched someone step on a butterfly's wings_

_Or have someone take one of your things_

_Thought you saw the truth in someone's eyes_

_Then you find out later it was all just a lie_

_Ever had someone change from friend to foe_

_As the world around you is stuck on "go"_

_You want to keep on dreaming a wonderful dream_

_To realise later it's not what it seems_

_You wanted to run, but you can't hide_

_In a room where there's no one there by your side_

_I've been where you've been…_

_I've seen what you've seen…_

_So my word of advice - for your life please take care_

_What you have now might not always be there…'_

Blaise's voice held no sarcasm; he just took on a teasing tone. Obviously, Blaise knew this boy well enough to reveal Ginny's name to him.

Luna looked between them as the four of them left the Slytherin common room. She had never seen this boy before. Strangely, Luna felt as if she somehow knew him too.

"Weaselette?" The boy said.

His emotionless face betrayed no emotion. However, Ginny could see the surprise in his grey eyes. _Did she know him?_

Out of the blue, his light brown hair changed. Streaks of platinum blonde hair were seen among his light brown ones. Slowly, the rest of the light brown hair changed. Soon, Ginny found herself staring into the face of Draco Malfoy.

She could recognise him anywhere, even under the mask. His platinum coloured hair really gave it all away. There was no one else in the school, including the teachers, with that hair colour.

"Crap!" Malfoy swore under his breath. "I should have known this stupid spell wouldn't last."

"Malfoy?" said Ginny. Somehow, she did not feel very shocked to know that it was him. It was like she unconsciously knew already.

"Who else do you think it is?" Malfoy said irritably. The surprise and amusement in his eyes had already disappeared.

Seeing not much of a point wearing her mask now, Ginny removed hers and the others followed suit.

Sensing the start of an argument, Blaise quickly cut in, "Draco, had a good time hiding from Parkinson?"

"No. Do you know how tough it was, watching my beautiful blonde locks turn brown?" Malfoy glared at Blaise. "And who was the one that so happily managed to change the colour of my hair?" He glared pointedly at Blaise.

"Don't look at me like that, I'm not the one who has an overly obsessive girlfriend. I'm just a loyal friend, merely trying my best to help." Blaise answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"Parkinson is not my girlfriend, as you very well know," said Draco, not looking very happy at what Blaise was saying.

"You were hiding from Parkinson?" Luna asked incredulously, exchanging a glance with Ginny.

"So what if I was?" Malfoy fired back rudely, earning an angry glare from Blaise. At a look from Blaise, he grudgingly added, "Yes, I was hiding from Parkinson."

A burst of giggles erupted from Ginny and Luna at the same time. Their laughter rang across the empty corridor. Ginny doubled-up, clutching her stomach. Luna was hanging onto Blaise and laughing exceedingly hard too.

Blaise started laughing too. Only Malfoy was silent. His face was impassive. But Ginny could tell he was not as angry as he was before they had started laughing.

A shrill voice, which they all knew too well, cut through their laughter. "Drakie? Is that you? I've been looking for you all night." Parkinson stepped out from the common room.

Malfoy, with amazingly quick reflexes, ducked into a shadowed corner. Ginny was not very sure what to do. She knew it was too late to put her mask back on. _Make a choice fast, Ginny. _She told herself. _Face Malfoy or Parkinson? _

Before Ginny even had a chance to consider her options, Blaise gave her a little push towards Malfoy's hiding place.

She landed face-first on the wall. Struggling to regain her balance, she felt a warm hand helping her.

"Thank you," she muttered, now in the darkened corner, looking at Blaise and Luna. She wondered where Luna was going to hide; there was not enough space in the corner for one more person.

As Parkinson drew nearer, Blaise swiftly swept Luna into a long kiss, successfully blocking her face from view.

To Ginny's surprise, their plan actually worked. Parkinson looked at them kissing for a while, not noticing her 'Drakie' and Ginny hiding nearby. Then, she started to make her way back to the common room.

"There's no need to thank me. I was just making sure Parkinson did not hear your clumsy movements." Malfoy replied. "Are you always that elephant-like?"

"It's hard to balance with someone pushing your back, you know." Ginny retorted.

"Really? Because I've seen fat dragons balance better than that." Malfoy whispered.

"In case you haven't noticed Malfoy, I'm not -" Ginny was cut off by a hand covering her mouth.

"Keep quiet. Do you want her to hear us?" He quickly released his hand and wiped it against the wall as though it was contaminated.

"Look who's talking." Ginny answered back.

They watched Parkinson turn around for a moment.

Parkinson thought she had heard some sounds. She looked around. No one was there. Shaking her head slightly, she entered the common room.

Ginny breathed a sigh of relief as she watched Parkinson enter the Slytherin common room.

"That was close," said Ginny.

Ginny and Malfoy emerged from their hiding place. To Malfoy's disgust and Ginny's horror, Blaise and Luna were still kissing like there was no tomorrow.

"Blaise. Luna. Umm... she's gone..." said Ginny. She waved her hands around wildly, trying to get their attention. Blaise and Luna paid her no heed and continued what they were doing.

It was not very nice seeing her best friend kissing her good friend. Ginny grimaced and closed her eyes for a while. When she opened them, she saw that Malfoy's eyes were locked onto hers.

She understood exactly how he was feeling now. Both of them were in a quite similar position. It felt weird. This had to be the only thing she and Malfoy had in common.

Clearing her throat, Ginny announced to no one in particular. "I'll be off then. Bye, Blaise. Bye, Malfoy. See you around. See you in our dormitories later, Luna."

Malfoy simply nodded his acknowledgement and walked off to his dormitories too.

Ginny turned in the opposite direction and headed towards her dormitories. It was only then did she realise that Malfoy had not even mocked her about her family once that night.

* * *

The door opened and Luna walked into the room with her hair in a mess. Her cheeks were also flushed pink. 

Ginny looked up. "For a moment there, I thought you were not coming back tonight." She had already bathed and took off her dress.

"Don't be silly," said Luna, blushing furiously.

"I was simply stating facts," said Ginny in her most innocent voice.

"I'm going to bathe." Luna stated.

Ginny turned her attention back to the book she was reading. She had thought about what happened earlier on. Ginny was convinced that Malfoy was just being civil to her for Blaise's sake.

Getting a little tired of reading, she took out her parchment. _Was he back from the party yet? _She did not know. _Only one way to find out..._

_Back from the party yet? _She wrote.

_**Yes. **_

Ginny grinned. She hadn't expected him to reply so fast.

_How was it?_

_**It was quite strange. **_

_Something out the ordinary happened to me too. I guess I'm not alone, huh?_

_**Yeah...**_

_What sort of party did your House hold?_

**_No... if I tell you, you can figure out what House I'm from and thus narrow down your search._**

_Smart boy. I was hoping you would fall for it. _

**_I know I'm smart. Other people might fall for it. But not me._**

_Could you at least give me a clue as to who you are?_

**_No._**

_No clue? _

_**Yes, no clue. Seriously, do I have to spell everything out for you?**_

_I would like that, just to irritate you though. But it is not necessary, thank you. _

_**You really think it is not necessary?**_

_Yes, I really do. Stop changing the topic and answer my question. _

**_But why would you want a clue? It spoils the fun._**

_Fun?_

**_Okay, maybe not fun. But it destroys the aura of mystery surrounding my identity._**

_So you like to be mysterious?_

**_Why not? Nothing wrong with that, is there?_**

_No, there's nothing wrong with it. Sometimes, it's better. I understand why. Then you get to say whatever you want, say whatever you think. You get to be yourself. No one gets to judge you just by your name. _

There was no reply. Ginny waited for a response, lying on her bed and twirling her quill around her finger.

* * *

Draco Malfoy stared at his parchment. The simple words that she wrote had affected him so badly. It was true. _So true..._ She really understood how he felt without even needing to ask anything. 

He stared blankly at the parchment for a few minutes. She could practically read him like an open book and she did not even know him. What was he going to do? No one could actually read him like that, well, except Blaise. But that was different.

He had known Blaise for about seven years now. They had been best friends since their first day at Hogwarts. Blaise was a faithful and loyal friend. Draco trusted him with his life.

His mind was in a tumult of confusion. For the first time in his life, Draco Malfoy did not know what to do. He hoped it would be the first and the last time.

Jerking out from his thoughts, he looked down at his parchment and found out he had not written his reply. He grabbed his quill and wrote his message in his very neat and precise handwriting.

_**I agree...**_

* * *

Ginny walked down the stairs with Luna. They were on their way to Hogsmeade to meet Blaise. 

It was a bright sunny day. The birds were chirping merrily, singing sweet songs of joy and laughter. The huge, puffy clouds floated lazily in the azure blue skies. Ginny was feeling wonderfully peaceful and contented.

_Nothing can spoil my day, _she thought happily. But she did not know how completely wrong she was.

They walked into Hogsmeade and spotted Blaise outside an ice-cream shop. They had chosen that place to meet because the chances of being spotted in there were very slim. No students usually went to that shop to eat for fear of putting on weight.

"Hey," Ginny greeted Blaise.

"Hello," Blaise greeted Luna by giving her a kiss on her cheek. "Come on, let's not keep Draco waiting."

_What? Malfoy was here? _Ginny was shocked. She took a deep silent breath, regaining her composure. "You didn't tell me Malfoy was coming," she said accusingly to Blaise, who, in her opinion, had what looked like an all-knowing smile on his face.

"Draco, as difficult as it seems to believe this, has no one, but me, to go to Hogsmeade with. Unless, he wants to go with Parkinson or go alone, he has to come with me." Blaise stated simply.

Ginny contemplated her options. One, she could verbally abuse Blaise and then get it from Luna later on. Two, she could refuse to enter the ice-cream shop and walk around Hogsmeade alone. Three, she could try to tolerate Malfoy for a while and save herself from any trouble concerning Luna and Blaise. Actually, there were many options, but these were the main few.

Ginny sighed. She did not want it to seem like she was over-reacting. She liked Blaise very much and she did not want to ruin their friendship. What could she do if her good friend's best friend was her brother's enemy? _Did that even make sense? _

"Fine...let's just go in..." Ginny watched as the smile on Blaise face grew and she trudged up the stairs wearily. _If anything could spoil a good day, it was meeting Draco Malfoy._

Blaise opened the door and Ginny trudged in after Luna. Blaise then led them to a table in a corner. Ginny could already see Malfoy's famous blonde hair glinting under the lighting.

She sighed. _This was really going to be a long day._

Being last, Ginny was not able to choose where she wanted to sit. Not that she was being childish or anything, but she would definitely prefer to sit with Luna, or even Blaise than Draco Malfoy.

She did not have any choice but to reluctantly settle in next to Malfoy. It was a really awkward situation, trying to avoid have to touch any part of him.

Blaise looked at them with a growing smirk on his face. He was obviously oblivious to all the tension surrounding them.

"What would you like?" The waiter's voice cut through the apprehension and the unease of the situation.

Ginny looked at the menu and decided upon a hot fudge chocolate sundae. The others decided and placed their orders too.

The waiter left to get their ice creams.

Ginny's heart was pounding furiously. She had entirely no idea of what to say. Luna was fiddling with her butterbeer cork bracelet. Blaise eyes were fixed upon something behind Ginny and he was unusually silent. She almost turned to look at Malfoy, but decided to keep her eyes to herself.

Everyone was soundless. Finally, Ginny could not take the tense silence anymore. "Where are we going after this?" She said, with fake cheerfulness.

All eyes turned to her at once. Ginny swallowed, feeling Malfoy's eyes boring into the back of her head.

Then, Blaise replied, "I don't know."

"You know what surprises me most, Blaise?" Malfoy drawled lazily after some time, looking extremely bored. "I never knew you could be this inarticulate. Usually, you keep yapping into my ear non-stop."

Malfoy's statement did it. It broke the ice between all of them. Luna erupted into peals of laughter and Ginny was trying very hard not to laugh at Blaise, although it was not really working.

"Shut it, Malfoy," Blaise snapped.

"Oh... Back to last names now, I see..." Malfoy said, a smug look on his face.

"Actually, Draco, I must agree with you. Blaise can get to be pretty yappy at times." Luna had stopped laughing and was watching Blaise with a teasing smile on her face.

"Great. You are siding him too." Blaise grumbled. He looked expectantly at Ginny, hoping to gain an ally.

Ginny purposely deliberated for a while, her hand on her chin as though she was thinking over her decision. Actually, she already knew what her answer was going to be. "Sorry, Blaise. But I'm afraid that's a fact," she said, grinning at Blaise.

"Traitors," Blaise muttered.

Just then, the waiter came with all their ice creams. Ginny dug into hers immediately.

Soon, they had a pleasant conversation injected with mirth and laughter. Ginny never thought that Malfoy could be a good conversationalist, but to her surprise, he was. She just never took the time or effort to actually listen to what he said.

After they had their ice creams, Luna wanted to go to the pet shop. Blaise agreed, as he mostly did to whatever Luna suggested. Malfoy was frowning slightly. Apparently, going to the pet shop was not very appealing to him. But he did not voice his complains.

"Don't frown. It causes wrinkles," Ginny said, not faking the cheerfulness in her voice anymore. She found that sitting next to Malfoy was not that bad. Well, she was still alive, wasn't she?

"What do you know about wrinkles?" Malfoy answered, hands in his pockets as he followed Blaise and Luna, who were walking up in front.

The roads were quite crowded so no one really noticed them.

"I know everything about wrinkles. Believe me..." Ginny said. Her auburn hair was flying in the gentle breeze.

Malfoy snorted. "Do you give me any reason to?"

"Why, yes. By the way, snorting is very unbecoming of you," Ginny said sweetly.

"Like you care," said Malfoy.

"Of course I do." Ginny's eyes widened in shock. That just slipped out of her mouth. She did not even know why she said that. She hoped he had not heard it. "It's rude," she added hastily, in hopes of covering up what she just said.

Malfoy's expression had not changed. However, Ginny caught some unidentified look in his eyes.

"What do you know about politeness and manners?" He asked.

They had just reached the pet shop and were about to enter in. Blaise and Luna had already gone in. Ginny and Malfoy were alone outside the shop.

"Everything..." Ginny gave him a smirk and without waiting for his reply, she entered the shop.

* * *

Ginny walked back to the castle behind Blaise and Luna again. Not wanting to walk alone, she walked beside Malfoy, but not too close though. 

The pet shop had been fun. There were cute cats and dogs there. They also sold rats, like the one Ron had, owls and toads. Ginny had particularly liked a pure white kitten. It had caught her eye once she entered the shop.

It had such stunning eyes. One was very light blue and the other was a light shade of grey. The fur was so white, it looked almost like snow.

It was an unusual kitten and Ginny liked it very much. She had considered buying it, but she had not enough money to do so. So, she settled for just playing with it all the time they were in the pet shop.

When they were leaving she had to say a heartfelt goodbye to the kitten. She had grown quite attached to the kitten during the short amount of time the spent together and she knew she would never see it again. Someone would come along and probably buy the kitten.

After the pet shop, they had gone to the quill shop. Blaise had needed some quills as he was running out. Malfoy had purchased some too.

Ginny tried to look away as he took out his moneybag. She certainly did not want to see how much it was spilling with gold.

Subsequent to the quill shop, they decided head back to the castle. _It was not such a bad day, after all... _Ginny thought as they walked back towards the castle, the waning sun's rays casting a warm glow onto all of them.

* * *

A/N: Here's Chapter 9! As for the poll thing in the last chapter, here are the people who got them right. Oh, and the answer is... DRACO MALFOY! I 'm sure all of you know that by now. Haha... 

These are the people:

**_SlytherinGodesse, werecool, FireFantasma_** (although you changed your mind and said Colin in the end, I know you knew it was Draco because, after all, you said that in the first part of your review), **_asecretno1nosbutme, MorganisM-Lve, ajma, SenatorSolo._**

Please let me know through a review about whether you like me to keep on with the polling thing (this is considered as a polling thing too. Heehee). I would really like to know. If you don't, please say so too. I appreciate all the constructive comments, whether good or bad.

As usual, here are the people who reviewed (Thank you so much!):

**_SenatorSolo, SlytherinGodesse, werecool, StarLightStarBright567, harrypotterchick4ever, lulu, FireFantasma, Flipinpenname, asecretno1nosbutme, MorganisM-Lve, Phoenix Feather Queen, Smirke, ajma, Tomsgirl2005, I'm Blond. James Blond._**

The next chapter is coming up! I promise. Haha... Remember, review! (:


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10 **

'_No one's ever going to get to me _

_The way you do..._

_Can't you see,_

_That you are the only one _

_Who has ever made me feel this way?_

_Nothing is ever coming even close _

_No one is ever been comparable to you_

_And no girl, no place, no where _

_Would ever mean a thing to me, but you.' _

"Ginny!"

Ginny sighed and turned around. She was back in her common room with Luna after the Hogsmeade visit. Whatever she said about it being quite a good day earlier on, she took it back now.

Ron was standing there with Harry and Hermione. Ron face was a purplish red and was screwed up in anger. Harry had his hand on his shoulder; no doubt to physically restrain Ron if he went to far.

"What?" Ginny said.

"What? You know very well what!" Ron exploded.

Ginny was confused. What did he mean by that? A cold dread filled her stomach. She cleared her face of all expression and remained calm and composed – at least on the outside.

"Calm down, Ron. Let Ginny explain," Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't jump to conclusions like you always do."

_Thank goodness for Hermione. _"Explain what?" Ginny said innocently. "If you don't tell me what I'm supposed to explain, how can I be able to explain it to you?"

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but Hermione beat him to it.

"Well, we saw you going into the ice cream shop with Zabini and Luna." Hermione explained. "And Ron here, intelligently concluded that you were 'fraternising with the enemy'." She crossed her arms, irritated.

Evidently, Hermione had not forgotten about the event concerning Viktor Krum that happened in her fourth year.

Ginny sighed. No excuses were going to work for this. It would be best if she just told them the truth. She knew Hermione would probably not mind; and the worst she could do was to yell at Ginny.

Luckily, they had not seen Malfoy walking with her. Ginny knew when to count her blessings.

However, Harry and Ron were a completely different matter. Harry was somewhat more in control of himself than Ron, but quite dangerous at the same time.

"Okay. I'm going out with Blaise," said Luna, ignoring the gasps of shock coming from Hermione. "And I wanted Ginny to keep me company. Is that a problem?" She asked Ron with a raised eyebrow.

Ron's jaw dropped. He knew he had no power over Luna, since she was not his sister or anything. She was free to do whatever she wanted and it was none of his business.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked warily. It was the first thing he said since the discussion, if you can call it that, started.

"Yes. That's what we did. Nothing else." Ginny added. "Actually, this is really none of your business. As I recall, Luna is not related to you, Ron."

Ron's mouth opened and closed again like a fish gasping for air.

"You are going out with Zabini?" Ron choked out.

"Why not?" Luna's eyes narrowed. She could take people teasing her about her dressing and her beliefs but she certainly did not take kindly to people to insulted Blaise.

"He's a Slytherin!" Ron spluttered out.

Luna eyes reduced to slits dangerously. Her lips, which were usually smiling, were pressed together tightly in an angry scowl.

Hermione saw the danger signs and immediately took a hold on Ron's arm and motioned for Harry to get him out. Harry complied, dragging Ron out through the door. A few muffled shouts could be heard as Ron left the common room.

As Hermione was the last to leave, Ginny then told her not to tell anyone about Luna's relationship. She agreed, also promising to make sure Ron and Harry did not blurt it out to the world.

"I'll take care of it," Hermione promised, as she quickly popped her head back through the door before disappearing after Ron and Harry.

"That went quite well," Luna commented, no longer angry now that Ron was out of her sight.

"Yep." Ginny agreed. That situation would have been far worse if Luna had not intercepted on her behalf. She could not bear to imagine what would happen. Probably, Ron would go to bed that night with a bruised eye, but you could never be too sure.

* * *

It was a breezy day. The sun was shining brightly. It was late in the afternoon. The crystal clear water in the lake reflected the sunshine, making it look like myriads of glittering diamonds. 

Ginny was at the castle grounds, doing her homework under a shady tree. Luna was in Snape's dungeons, serving detention for 'not paying attention in class'.

She had actually been paying attention. Snape, being Snape, accused her of doing otherwise. Anyother arguments she hadbeen ignored and had gotten her into detention.

Ginny lay on the grass, absentmindedly twirling her quill in her hand. With her elbows propped up against the ground and legs bent - in the air, she thought of the answer and scribbled it down.

There was a question Ginny did not know. She did not even remember Snape teaching it to them. It was plain ridiculous. He did not teach it and he expected them to know the answer?

Or maybe she was not paying attention at that time. Ginny was not very sure. Could he have taught it the day Luna and her were reading a storybook without getting caught by Snape? Possibly...

_What is the best substitute for the crushed sopophorous beans for the Everlasting Elixirs potion? _

This question puzzled her. As she was pondering over the question, a shadow fell over her. Not bothering to look up, she assumed it was Luna.

After all, it could not be Harry or Ron who came to look for her, right? There was still a chance Hermione would. Ron and Harry were definitely out. They did not look for her unless they needed money, or help of some sort.

"So how was detention?" Ginny asked, eyes looking at the question. "Snape made you dissect frogs?"

"No." The shadow answered. "If I ever was in detention, Snape would have just made me read a passage from a book."

Ginny looked up in surprise. Even though the face was shadowed, there was no mistaking the blonde hair and the grey eyes. Malfoy.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, going back to her work as though she did not care that he was there. She refused to show him that he had surprised her.

"Breathing." He answered smoothly. "Human beings generally have to breath, you know."

"You know what I mean."

"I know what you mean." He settled down on the grass beside her. But not that close.

"If you do, answer my question then," Ginny said irritably. She really had no time for this nonsense. Why did he have to sit next to her? Couldn't he see she was busy? _Then again, he probably would not care if she were busy or not. _Ginny thought wryly.

She did not know why he was here and tried to tolerate his annoying presence for Blaise's sake. It was really sad that he had such an infuriating friend like Malfoy.

"Fine. I'm out here to watch the scenery. Satisfied?"

"Very. It would be more satisfying if you could go away now." Ginny said, still trying to figure the answer out. She had to hand this in the next day, or go to detention. Ginny certainly did not want to dissect frogs, thank you very much.

"Is there a rule that says I cannot be here?"

"Yes," said Ginny.

"Since when?" He challenged.

"Since now." Ginny still had not turned to look at him, except for the first time when he had just arrived, and she liked to keep it that way. She could felt his gaze on her.

"By who, may I ask?"

"Me."

"Right. And I'm supposed to follow that rule?"

"Yes." Ginny said shortly.

"What makes you think I'll follow it?"

"Because I really really need to know best substitute for the crushed sopophorous beans for the Everlasting Elixirs potion, or I'll be dissecting frogs tomorrow for detention!" Ginny burst out, slamming her hand against the ground. She had lost all her patience with him.

She finally turned around and glared at him fiercely, brown eyes flashing brightly in the golden light. Ginny looked ready to kill something.

Malfoy just looked at her with an eyebrow raised, clearly unafraid at her show of anger. He sat down there, against the tree, examining his nails calmly.

"You really shouldn't glare. Your eyeballs will get overused and drop off one day." Malfoy said, unperturbed by Ginny's actions.

"If I really wanted my eyeballs to drop off, there would be no need to keep glaring. Just one look at you will do the job." Ginny snapped back.

"Well, that has to be because I'm too good looking."

"In your dreams, Malfoy." Ginny said, going back to her work. If she were not in such a bad mood, Malfoy's eyeball 'joke' would have made her laugh. But it helped lessen her anger and calm her down slightly. She did not know why. It just did.

"I thought it would be in your dreams," Malfoy smirked, emphasising on the word 'your'.

" More like in my nightmares."

"Really. Am I that horrible to look at?"

"It depends."

"On?" Malfoy raised his eyebrows.

"Who is the one looking at you," Ginny said simply. She had decided to skip that particular question and do the rest first. "If it is me looking at you, I would have to say yes. If it were-" Ginny stopped. She had to be very careful with what she said next.

"Yes?" Malfoy prompted.

"Well, if it is one of those giggling Slytherin girlfriends that you have, I think they would say no."

"What an astute observation you have made."

"It's good to know you agree, now leave me alone." Ginny tucked some stray hairs behind her ear.

"I will do whatever I like."

"Yeah...yeah... just keep quiet," Ginny frowned. _What was the strongest love potion called again? _Seriously, he was very distracting and she had a hard time concentrating. _Oh yeah, it's Amortentia. _

A cool breeze blew and a sweet scent drifted past her. Her nose twitched. She was sure she had smelt that scent before. But where? Then she remembered. The Invisibility Cloak Blaise had lent them. The trace of smell was not there when she was alone. To her horror, she realised that the scent was coming from Malfoy! And she liked it! That meant...

"Malfoy, you do, by any chance, happen to own an Invisibility Cloak?" She asked, as sweetly as possible.

"Why?" His eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"I was...just...just wondering," Ginny mumbled.

"Do you really think Potter is the only one that owns one?" Malfoy arched his eyebrow in response. "Anyway, I should be going."

"Go then. No one asked you here in the first place."

"As it so happens, this is my favourite tree."

"It doesn't belong to you," Ginny said.

"Well it does now." Malfoy stood up. "By the way, it's salamander's blood, Weasley. Salamander's blood." With that, he strode off, not waiting for her reply.

_Salamander's blood? _What was he talking about? Ginny looked back at the question she had been pondering on for so long. Then it dawned on her. The best substitute for the crushed sopophorous beans for the Everlasting Elixirs potion was salamander's blood. How could she have forgot?

* * *

Luna plopped down onto the bed tiredly. She just came back from detention. 

"How was it?" Ginny asked, propping herself up on an elbow.

"Bad," Luna sighed. "Had to dissect frogs."

Ginny grimaced. "Gross."

"You bet," Luna headed towards the bathroom. "I'm going to bathe."

"I'll wait for you to go down to dinner," Ginny nodded.

Ginny took out her parchment. There was a message.

_**Are you at dinner yet?**_

_No. Obviously, you are not too. _

_**Yes. I am not. **_

_Hmm...you never strike me as a person who loves to eat._

_**Perhaps. **_

_But there always is a possibility that you are a huge, fat bulging mammoth. _

_**Don't get your hopes up. **_

_I promise I won't. _

_**Your promises do not mean anything. **_

_You are wrong. My promises do. _

_**Promises are just words, devoid of meaning. **_

_If you mean them, then they aren't devoid of meaning. I bet you don't keep your promises, do you?_

**_I do. I'm a man of my word._**

_I guess I have to see about that._

**_You do. _**

_Tell me something about you._

**_Why don't you find out yourself? _**

_Easier said than done._

**_I remember you clearly said that you 'will find out who I am'... Does that jolt your memory? _**

_It does. Don't worry. I'll be keeping an eye out for you._

**_Good to know that. _**

_When are you going to dinner? _

**_Soon. Why? _**

_I want to see if I can accidentally bump into you._

**_That will never happen. I don't bump into people. _**

_Surely you must have bumped into someone at least once in your life._

**_Sorry to disappoint you, but no. _**

_That's just sad._

**I_ don't see what I should be sad about. _**

_You are missing out on the joys of life._

**_I don't find bumping into random people joyful. Perhaps only you do, being so strange and all. _**

_Excuse me. I'm not strange. Even if I'm, how do you know? You have never seen me before._

**_What makes you think I have not? _**

_So you have?_

**_Maybe. _**

Luna exited the shower. "Let's go."

"Hang on," said Ginny.

_Have to go. Talk to you later._

**_Yeah, and maybe we can see if we accidentally bump into each other. _**

_Bye. _Ginny wrote, ignoring his sarcasm.

Ginny kept her parchment and walked out of the door with Luna.

They reached the Great Hall just in time for dinner. On the way down, Ginny had not bumped into anyone. It was just a pity that her plan did not work.

They walked towards the Gryffindor table and sat down. Unfortunately, there were not much seats left so they had to settle for seat beside Ron, Harry and Hermione.

Ginny kept her eyes averted and did not look at Ron. They had not been speaking since the argument. She reached for her food, determined to make it out of there without having another fight with Ron.

She ate her potato salad in silence, tuning out Harry and Ron's loud chatters. Ginny was sad to say that her brother had no table manners at all. Right now, some mashed potato was dripping down his chin.

Ginny was put off. But she did not say anything. Luna was eating slowly, jabbing her fork at the lettuce unhurriedly. Ginny guessed she was tired from the detention. Snape was such a terrorist.

She looked up and her eyes met Blaise's, who was sitting opposite her. He gave her a small smile, which she returned.

Hermione tugged at her sleeve. "Ron has something to say to you, Ginny." She gave Ron a meaningful look.

"Umm...Ginny?" Ron stammered. "I just wanted to say sorry for that day. I should not have jumped to conclusions. And sorry Luna," he said, looking at Luna in the eye. "It was really none of my business."

It was very obvious that Hermione somehow forced him to say that, but still, Ginny accepted his apology graciously. They could not stay fighting forever, could they?

"It's all right, Ron." Ginny replied. "I know you were just concerned for me." That was true up till a certain extent. Sometimes, he could be paranoid over her actions.

Luna also accepted his apology and they continued eating. Hermione looked very pleased with herself for what she had accomplished. After all, it had not been very easy to force and persuade Ron to do that.

The resting of the evening passed swiftly and soon, they were back in the common room. Ginny and Luna were sitting by the fireplace with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Are we going back for Christmas, Ron?" Ginny asked. Christmas was nearing and she still was not sure whether they were supposed to go back to the Burrow.

"I'm not sure," He answered. "Mum feels it's safer for us to be in Hogwarts than the Burrow."

"Oh..." Ginny drifted off. She hated this war and wanted it to end. Charlie was still on his mission and no word had been received from him yet.

Mrs Weasley said he was fine, but Ginny still was not very sure. Her terrifying nightmares had reduced slightly, but she still had them.

Ginny stared into the burning embers, deep in her thoughts, her brown eyes reflecting the golden light of pure fire.

* * *

A/N: Christmas is next! 'I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!' Haha... Some of you really read my mind. That is not the last you have seen of the kitten. Heehee... This is a really big clue I'm giving away. Never mind. Hmm... 

Since you all know that Ginny's going to receive a kitten, why don't you help me choose a name for it? **Send in the names that you want for the kitten** and I'll see which one suits the kitten best!

Someone said ina review that if _'Blaise and Luna actually know that Ginny and Draco are secretly communicating through the charmed parchment? Since Ginny told her best friend, wouldn't it be likely for Draco to do so then?' _I'm sorry if I have been unclear, but Blaise does not know that Ginny is communicating with someone through the parchment. Neither does he know that Draco is communicating with anyone. Ginny is more prone to telling Luna everything, that's why she told Luna, but Draco is more secretive, although he trusts Blaise, he has not gotten round to telling Blaise yet. He is still quite confused over this issue.

All right. I shall try not to put too obvious hints. But sometimes I can't stop myself. Like my blabbering now. Haha.

And don't worry; no offence is taken, at all, to your opinions. It's good to tell me if you are unclear about anything in the story.

In reply to what **_twinsofthesky _**said, I promise to try my best to make the characters sparkle and to make them real. However, you must forgive me if I'm not able to do it properly. As you can see from the stories in my profile, this is my first fanfic, so I still have a lot to learn. Thank you very much for your opinion; I'll try my utmost best to do it! Please keep on reading the next chapters, I'll try to improve them!

Here are my reviewers! Thanks for reviewing; you don't know how much you have inspired me to write.

_**ailiramlove, nc99, candycoated, asecretno1nosbutme, pinkstargummii, SenatorSolo, Flipinpenname, harrypotterchick4ever, RazzlebeDazzled, Aly'sPenName, fluffernutter, QueenThayet, Tomsgirl2005, StarLightStarBright567, ajma, Phoenix Feather** **Queen, ****twinsofthesky.** _

By the way, I have changed my homepage, so check it out. The link is in my profile page. It's definitely better than my previous one. Haha. Send in your comments and thoughts too!

Hope you liked this chapter! Review!


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11 **

'_I have walked this earth with broken bones_

_I have been keeping secrets under all these lights_

_But when you are around my defences go_

_You don't let me run away from you _

_You don't let me twist and turn the truth _

_It feels as if I am naked when you are standing in the room.' _

It was a week before Christmas. Ginny received a letter from her parents saying that she and Ron would be staying for Christmas. She did not really mind. Staying at Hogwarts for more than five years already, it was like her second home.

Harry, as usual, was staying at Hogwarts for Christmas. In all the six years he was at Hogwarts, he had never gone back to the Dursleys unless he had no other choice.

Luna was staying too. She heard that Ginny was staying and decided to keep her company. Since Luna was staying, Blaise was staying for Christmas too. This year, more people were staying at Hogwarts than going back home. All of them knew that Hogwarts was probably the safest place to be in at this time of the war.

Ginny walked towards Hogsmeade with Luna. They were going shopping for Christmas presents. Usually, Blaise came with them for Hogsmeade trips, but Luna had wanted Ginny opinion on Blaise's Christmas present, so both of them went alone.

Hogsmeade was packed and full of students. Half the world was there shopping for Christmas. The shops that lined the street were decorated with candy canes and other beautiful Christmas decorations.

Ginny walked down the street, careful to stay close to Luna. It was very easy to lose people in that horrendous crowd.

The snow had not fallen yet. Ginny guessed that it would probably start falling that evening. The weather had taken a change recently. That meant the snow was to come soon.

She had to get presents for her parents, Luna, Harry, Hermione, Blaise and not to mention all her six brothers. It was going to be difficult carrying the presents back to Hogwarts.

Ginny had saved some of her pocket money to buy presents for everyone. The last summer, she had gotten a part-time job. The salary she earned was not bad so she had more money to spend this time.

Luna and Ginny squeezed their way through the crowd and finally arrived at their first stop - Honey Dukes, where they begin their hunt for the perfect gifts.

It was about four hours later when Ginny stepped out of the last shop. Shopping could be so exhausting. She would rather go for Quidditch practice. She did not understand why some girls loved shopping so much. It was tiring and it killed her feet.

Luna stepped out behind her. She looked no more energetic than Ginny. At least they had completed their present list. Ginny had one more person to buy a gift for. That was Luna. It would have to wait or it would not be much of a surprise anymore.

Ginny was tired, but she was quite satisfied with her purchases. She got Bill another fang earring to match his old one. Charlie, she got a pair of fire resistant gloves, to protect his hands when he worked with dragons. Percy, she got him a nice eagle quill. As for Fred and George, she got them some tricks from Zonko's. It was easy to get something for Ron. She knew he would surely like the Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans she got him.

Ginny and Luna walked into the pet shop. She was hoping to see the kitten that she liked so much there. But there was a high chance it was being bought already. Craning her neck to look for the white kitten among all the other brown and black ones, she saw that it was gone from the cage she had seen it in weeks before.

Sighing dismally, she turned around to exit the shop. To her surprise, she saw the kitten all alone in a single cage. Ginny smiled, and opened the cage to pet the kitten. It meowed and licked her hand.

"That one is reserved," The shopkeeper informed her from behind.

Closing the cage, Ginny turned around and asked, "By whom?"

"I'm sorry, miss. But I'm afraid that it's confidential. We cannot give away anything about our customers," the shopkeeper smiled and said.

Truthfully, Ginny was a little irritated. Come on, it was just a pet shop. Not the biggest bank in the world. Nevertheless, she gave the shopkeeper a forced smile and turned to pet the kitten one last time.

"Be good and listen to your new owner, okay?"

It meowed in response. Before Ginny walked out of the shop, she gave it one last smile and joined Luna who was waiting outside watching over their shopping bags. They trudged unhurriedly through the crowd, holding on to their bags. Upon reaching their dormitories, Ginny noticed a new sign on the signboard.

Many people were crowding around it. Ginny put down the bags she was holding in her room and walked down again.

"What's it about?" Ginny asked Harry, pointing to the sign.

"Some form about teaching defence skills." He shrugged. "Are you going to sign up?"

"I guess." Ginny said, as Harry left the common room.

She waited till the crowd had subsided before writing down Luna' s name and her name on the form. Luna was still up in the dormitories, but Ginny knew she would definitely want to join.

The form said that the extra defence class was to take place after Christmas for over a period of six weeks. There were three lessons per week. One on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The students who signed up would be taught how to defend themselves using their wands, with a sword and without any weapons.

_Fight with a sword? _That was unexpected. Why were they fighting with swords? Won't dueling with their wands be better and more effective? Luna shared the same thoughts as Ginny. She just had come down from their dormitories already. Could it have something to do with the war?

Ginny decided to ask Harry, Ron and Hermione about it. If it had something to do with the war, they were the best people, besides the members of the Order, to ask. That did not mean that they would tell them, but it was worth a shot.

* * *

"Hey," said Ginny during dinner. "How was your day?"

"Fine." Ron answered.

Ginny looked around. There were not many people in the Great Hall now. It was best if she asked them as soon as possible. She had to be very careful with what she said. If she made the slightest mistake, all her effort would be down the drain. She purposely dragged Luna down early to dinner just so that they could have a somewhat private conversation.

"Why are they teaching us self-defence with swords?" Ginny tried to ask casually. "Does it have anything to do with the war?"

Harry and Ron froze. However, Hermione just grinned and said smugly, "Told you she would figure it out soon."

"Well...well..." Ron stuttered. "I don't know if you are allowed to know."

"Yeah..." Harry nodded. "It's strictly confidential."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "I think I am old enough to know."

"Ginny's right, Ron. You cannot keep hiding things from her. Her ignorance might come back and hurt her one day. You don't want that to happen, do you?" Hermione spoke up seriously.

"Who are you calling ignorant?" Ginny muttered to Hermione, who just grinned.

"Alright." Harry relented, for the first time ever about telling Ginny something confidential about the war. He looked around the Great Hall. Not many people were there yet, so it was quite private. "Yes, it has to do with the war."

"What?" Luna asked, listening carefully to the conversation.

Harry eyed Luna warily.

"Honestly, Harry. Luna definitely on our side and don't you doubt her for one moment," Hermione added fiercely. "Fine. I'll do the telling. What Harry was trying very hard to say, was that it has to do with the war and–" Everyone subconsciously huddled closer. "Dumbledore wants us to learn how to defend ourselves with a sword because–" Here, her voice dropped to a barely audible whisper. "The Order found out that Harry has to kill Voldemort with the sword of Godric Gryffindor. If it were any other sword, it would not work. It's the final blow to end the evil of Voldemort."

"That's why Dumbledore wants us to learn how to sword-fight," Ron finished.

Ginny was stunned. Killing Voldemort with a sword? That was near impossible. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Unless the Order is wrong, but I highly doubt it," said Harry.

"Merlin," Ginny breathed. "How are you going to do that?"

"I don't know," said Harry. His face fell.

"Stop looking so glum, it attracts Horned Snotacks." Luna said brightly.

Ginny laughed. Luna's queerness could sometimes come in handy. Especially, when it came to tense moments when people did not know what to say. Soon, a smile appeared on everyone's face.

Then the crowd came streaming in.

"Let's just eat," Ron said, taking a chicken drumstick from the table.

* * *

Ginny yawned. She just woke up. Looking beside her, she saw that Luna was still fast asleep. Ginny turned towards the window, to her utmost delight; she saw white flakes of snow falling.

_It was snowing! _

"Luna, wake up!" Ginny called. "It's snowing! It's snowing!"

"Yeah...yeah..." Luna mumbled, burrowing under her blanket.

"Don't you want to go and see the snow?"

"No, I prefer my beauty sleep, thank you very much," Luna muttered from under the sheets.

"Okay then. I'm going." Ginny announced, before hurriedly changing out of her pajamas and washing up.

She dashed out of the dormitories and jogged all the way to the entrance. Ginny reached the entrance panting. It was very early in the morning so no one was walking around yet. She stepped out through the door and watched the scene with a huge smile plastered on her face.

Ginny stepped out onto the snow and ran outside the castle. When she reached her desired spot, she lifted her arms and held them above her head, twirling herself around gracefully at the same time.

She looked up towards the light grey, almost light blue sky. Her eyes followed the small specks of white snow as they fell from the vast heavens above. It was a most spectacular sight.

She laughed out loud happily, glad that no one could hear her. At the same time, she danced about in the falling snow. They looked like the soft fleece of a lamb. So white and so pure. Ginny turned around and around till she got dizzy and fell onto the soft snow. Still, she laughed and giggled at her fall.

It was the thing she liked best about Christmas. The snow... It reminded her so much of the kitten she saw at the pet shop. She lay down and watched the snow fall down. A small flake of snow floated down in the light breeze and gently brushed against her hand. It melted instantly due to the warmth in her hand.

She closed her eyes. Nothing could be more peaceful than this. Luna obviously did not know what she was missing out on. Suddenly, she felt someone else's presence. Who was it? She opened her eyes.

A figure wearing a black cloak was in front of her. It deeply contrasted against the white snow in the background. She did not know anyone had woken up so early besides her. She sat up and could see the person's blonde hair shining under the white snow.

It was obvious who it was.

"I didn't know you woke up so early..." Ginny greeted.

"Is it a crime to?" Malfoy answered, settling down beside Ginny. He left a space between them.

"No. I like the snow," Ginny said, staring at the falling flakes wistfully. "Do you?"

"If I didn't, I won't be here." Malfoy said.

"True," said Ginny.

Suddenly, she stood up and ran away, hiding behind a tree. Ginny had just thought of something fun to do, instead of sitting there talking to Malfoy. He just raised an eyebrow at her antics and continued looking at the snow.

Ginny smirked behind the tree and crouched down. She dug her hands into the snow and picked it up. Patting the snow into a huge ball, she sneaked behind Malfoy and aimed for his head.

_THUD! _The snowball landed right on its mark, which was Malfoy's head. He turned around furiously. The look on his face was priceless. If Ginny had a camera, she would have risked it all to take a picture of it.

His eyes were widened and his mouth was hanging agape. She had never seen this like this before. She stood still for a moment, wanting to commit that moment to memory. But that was her mistake.

Malfoy lunged for her, an evil gleam in his eye. Luckily for Ginny, she was quick and ran behind another tree. She immediately scooped up another snowball for ammunition. Peeping out from behind the tree, she saw that Malfoy was nowhere to be seen.

Then, Ginny saw a flash of blonde behind some bushes. Grinning evilly, she threw her snowball right at the 'blonde haired bush'. Being a Chaser, it predictably landed on his head.

Snarling, Malfoy picked up a snowball of his own and threw it at Ginny. He was going to fight fire with fire. A squeal of shock was heard as the snowball narrowly hit Ginny on her midriff.

Ginny picked up another snowball and dodged a flying snowball from Malfoy. She quickly ran behind a fat tree to hide from Malfoy. He was as good as Fred and George when it came to throwing snowballs, Ginny found out later when she found herself wet and covered with snow, and that counted for something.

Malfoy had some injuries too. There were pieces of ice in his hair and his very expensive cloak was starting to get wet from the bottom.

Frowning, she suddenly had an idea. Picking up a snowball, she muttered a charm on it. Ginny then dashed out and threw the snowball, quickly running for cover behind some other trees. She did all this in one swift motion.

Her back to the tree, she sneaked a look out and saw Malfoy's hair turning a bright red. _Just as she planned. _She grinned. Except for the grey eyes and the trademark Malfoy smirk he had plastered on his face now, he would have look like a typical Weasley.

Laughing loudly, she ran to another tree and dodged another snowball coming her way. "Nice hair, Malfoy!" she cried as she crouched behind some bushes.

A slight snarling could be heard, followed by an extra large snowball that came hurtling through the air and landing on Ginny. Apparently, he had presently discovered his newly dyed bright red hair.

Laughing uncontrollably, she felt something hit her right on her head. Something wet was seeping down through her hair. She looked down. To her horror, her auburn hair was turning a deep green starting from the roots of her hair. She supposed she deserved it, for starting the fight and all. But she was not going to let that stop her from getting her revenge.

The onslaught began. If it was thought to be bad just now, it was terribly horrible now. The snowballs were everywhere. Some charmed, some were not. Ginny dodged from place to place, trying to hide from the terrible snowballs. Some other person would have regretted that they had stared the snowball fight, but not Ginny.

After what seemed to Ginny to be an eternity, she collapsed on the snow, her back leaning against a tree, panting with exhaustion.

Running on snow was very exhausting. Malfoy was in no better condition, his pride and arrogance were the ones fuelling him to run in the snow and throw snowballs around. Seeing Ginny sitting on the snow, he fell gracefully to the ground too.

"So, is it a truce then?"

"Yes," said Ginny, trying to recover from her exhaustion. "It's a truce."

By some mutual agreement, they stood up and walked towards the castle together. As Ginny walked, an icy breeze blew some flakes of ice onto her. The front of her clothes were soaked, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

Then, she felt a warm, dry cloth cover her quivering body. Warm arms enclosed her in the cloak and withdrew quickly. Looking down, she saw that Malfoy had wrapped his black cloak around her. Her jaw dropped. Ginny glanced up at him. He was looking ahead; his expression was blank, like nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Ginny could tell he was purposely trying not to meet her eye. She did not know what to say or do. As far as she was concerned, she had never been through such a situation in her entire life before. What was she supposed to say? Heat was rising up her cheeks and her heart was beating wildly. She really hoped that Malfoy did not notice anything. Why was she blushing anyway?

They walked in silence towards the castle. Ginny could hear the thudding of their footsteps against the ice. Ginny opened her mouth to say something several times, but then closed it again when she realised that she did not know what to say. What do you say when someone who has been mean to you all his life suddenly wraps a cloak around you to prevent you from freezing to death?

The cloak was very effective in keeping out the cold. It had a warming spell on it so Ginny was actually feeling warm now. She wondered how he was surviving in the cold without a cloak. It was no easy feat. The 'short term' spell she cast on his hair was wearing off. Blonde strands were appearing among the red.

They reached the entrance soon enough. Malfoy's dormitories were on the right while her dormitories were on the left. As Malfoy turned in the direction of his dormitories, she unwrapped the cloak and handed it to him. At once, her teeth started chattering from the cold.

"You need it more than I do," said Malfoy, pointedly looking at her chattering teeth.

"Thanks." It was very difficult talking with her teeth like that.

With a nod, Malfoy strode off in the opposite direction, leaving a cold and confused Ginny behind.

* * *

It was Christmas. Ginny awoke to the sounds of Ron's voice. He could be heard shouting her name up the stairs to the girls' dormitories.

"Wake up, Ginny! It's Christmas!" Ron yelled.

She could even hear him through the door. Lucky for her, boys were not allowed inside the girls' dormitories or Ginny was prepared to bet everything she owned that he would come barging through her door to wake her up. He did that sometimes at the Burrow.

"What?" she called out, her voice slightly muffled as she was speaking through the blankets.

"It's Christmas! Come down! Your presents are under the tree!" Ron hollered back. "Now, Ginny!"

"Alright," she mumbled. "I'm coming! I'm coming!" Ginny peered out from her lashes blearily. Noticing Luna's still form, she quickly shook Luna awake.

"What?" Luna mumbled.

"It's Christmas," Ginny explained and opened the door to the common room.

Ron could be seen standing at the foot of the stairs, waiting impatiently. Ginny walked down the stairs in her pajamas, with Luna behind her, yawning away.

"Merry Christmas, Ginny!" Ron crowed, pointing her stack of presents towards her.

"Merry Christmas, Ron."

Ginny trudged over to her pile of presents. Her leg muscles were strained due to the lack of use for approximately ten hours or more. She collapsed heavily in a stuffed armchair, Luna following suit.

As she reached for a present wrapped messily with a reindeer wrapper, she heard a little squeak. What was that? Did her sleep-fogged mind imagine it?

Looking around, she saw Ron and Harry sitting next to the fireplace doing what everyone else was doing- unwrapping their presents. Hermione was obviously still asleep.

"Did you hear that?" she asked Luna, who was beginning to unwrap her presents.

"Hear what?" Luna looked up from her present.

"I thought I heard something," Ginny frowned. "There it is, listen." Just at that point in time, Ron started running towards Ginny loudly and gave her a bone-crushing hug. That effectively stopped Ginny and Luna from being able to listen for the squeals Ginny thought she heard.

"Thanks for the Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Ginny," Ron said as he pulled away.

"Yeah, okay," Ginny said hurriedly as she strained her ears for any sort of sound.

"What's going on?" Ron asked, having noticed Ginny's weird behaviour.

Ginny shushed him and motioned for him to keep quiet. Slowly, a soft squealing could be heard.

"Did you hear that?" She asked.

"Yes," Ron replied. "What was that?"

"I don't know," Harry said, coming over. "It sounded like it came from over there." He pointed to the back of Ginny's stack of presents.

Ginny and Luna exchanged glances. What could it be? Who sent it to her? Harry edged closer to the back of the pile of presents. He went forward slowly, trying to pick up any slight sound. Then, he took hold of a brown box.

"I think the sounds came from here," Harry motioned at the box.

The brown box was in a very neat condition. There were holes on the box, showing that an animal of some sort was inside. The question was: what animal?

Harry placed the box on the floor gingerly. Ginny then went back up to her room to take her wand. She pointed her wand at the squealing box. This time, she thought she heard some scratching sounds.

She muttered a spell and the lid of the box opened. Everyone stepped back immediately. Ginny held her breath as the lid slowly dropped to the floor, leaving the box completely open.

After a few minutes, a white blur could be seen as it jumped out of the box swiftly. Ginny gasped in surprise as she recognised the white thing that was jumping out. She rushed forward and held the white kitten in her arms as it licked her face, meowing incessantly. It obviously did not like being trapped in the box.

"What is that?" Ron said. "Who is it from?"

Ginny felt around the kitten's neck and found a small tag on tied there. The tag was of very good quality paper and ink. Ginny skimmed through the tag, reading the note. It was written in an elegant, slanted handwriting.

_To: Ginevra Weasley _

_Thank you. Have a Happy Christmas. _

That was all it said. Nothing said whom the kitten was from. _Thank you? Thank you for what? _Ginny took the tag off and held it up for Ron to see.

"Who gave you this cat?"

"I don't know. They did not exactly specify, did they?" Ginny replied. "Anyway, nothing bad can possibly come out of this kitten, Ron." She held the cute kitten out for Ron to see. It meowed at him and playing swatted his arm.

"I suppose so..." said Ron.

"That's great! Ginny cried, hugging her new pet. "I'm going to name you Pawsome."

* * *

A/N: This is the end of Chapter 11. Hope you liked it. I chose the name Pawsome because it sounded pretty unusual and really cute. Sorry if I did not chose the other names, don't worry, there will be a lot more poll things so you can voice your suggestions. Thank you to **_FireFantasma_** for the name suggestion.

Here are all the nice people who have reviewed :) :

**_Chase, BetterDeadThanAlone, Resentment, ambulancechas3r, harrypotterchick4ever, 1010220, FanFicFanatick, lorina, dyingisbliss58, werecool, FireFantasma, AuntAnnie, asecretno1nosbutme, SenatorSolo, QueenThayet, silverflame715, candycoated, MorganisM-Lve, Sim1014, RazzlebeDazzled, ajma, Tattered.Broken.Angel, Raiast, AlaskaAngel, Phoenix Feather Queen, EVERY.TiME.WE.TOUCH, ailiramlove, Flipinpenname, Aly'sPenName. _**

In answer to the review _AuntAunnie _posted (does Blaise think Draco likes Ginny, or are Blaise and Luna trying to get them together?), Blaise is trying very hard to get them together, but he is keeping it a secret. No one else knows what he is trying to do.

Here's a little poll thing for all of you. Honestly, I have pretty much no idea of what I'm going to write next. I just write on an impulse. Haha. But I do know what's going to happen in the ending, though.

Why don't you send in the scenes that you want me to write out? No need to type it out exactly, but just the main outline. I'll see which scene fits the story and I'll write it out!

Okay, I'm really sorry, but I have a confession to make. All the time I have been posting these chapters was during my holiday. Today is the last day of my holiday and I'm actually not supposed to use the computer during the school term. But don't lose hope, I talked to my mum and she very kindly said that could use the computer. Nevertheless, there is a catch. I only can use it after I finish my work during the weekends. So, I'll be taking a longer time to update. Don't worry; I won't be giving up on this story (how could I possibly do that?), I'll just be taking a longer time to update. Just thought I would let you know. :) Don't give up on me! Keep reading!

Did you know that this is my longest chapter yet? Heehee... About four thousand words, I think... See you! Oh, and review!

Tell me your suggestions, I would like to hear all of them!


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

'_In living I found death,_

_In dying I found what life truly is, _

_Now I walk and live as if I will die in a second and be swept up._

_There's more to life than breathing, _

_And there's more to death than the stopping of breath.'_

"Pawsome?"

"Aren't you so cute," Ginny cooed to her pet, which at her purred in return. "What's wrong?"

"Possum?" Ron frowned, thinking.

"Isn't that some sort of-" Harry said, tapping his finger against his chin.

"Animal?" Ron butted in. "Squirrel-like thing."

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "Squirrel?" Seriously, sometimes she did not know if Ron was a modern human being or just an under-developed caveman.

"You know. The animal that flies up and down the trees," Ron said patiently, as if talking to someone who did not understand English. He was also waving his hands about, trying to mimic the movements of a possum.

"I know what a squirrel is. Who doesn't?" Ginny retorted, while Pawsome jumped out of her hands and padded over to Ron, sniffing at his pajamas pants. Ron tensed, staring at the white kitten tugging onto his pants with its teeth.

"Maybe Ronald doesn't," Luna laughed.

"Huh? What?" Ron looked around wildly. Clearly, he was not listening to what Luna said all his attention was focused on the playful kitten at his ankles. Ron flinched as he felt the cool sharp teeth of the kitten graze his ankle. Finally, Pawsome finished whatever she was doing to Ron's ankle and bounded back to Ginny.

"Anyway, Ronald," Ginny emphasised on his full name. "Squirrels don't fly up and down trees, they crawl or leap from one branch to another." She really was in no mood to give Ron his very much needed 'All about the life around you' talk that he needed once in awhile.

"Doesn't make much of a difference," Ron muttered. "Why-"

"It does make a lot of difference!" Luna cried out. "Do you know that a simple fact could save your life? Squirrels jump and crawl from tree to tree, but Nirels fly from one tree to another. And, for your information, Nirels can kill. One could easily mistake a Nirel for a Squirrel and get themselves killed due to such a simple mistake."

Ron and Harry blinked, obviously unused to this type of 'Luna' behaviour. "Luna," Harry said in a calm, patronising voice. "There is no such thing as a Nirel."

"There is!" Luna said. These two stupid boys did not know what in the world they were talking about. One had to pity them, being so dumb and all.

"No, there isn't," Ron said.

"Yes, there is," Luna huffed, crossing her arms.

"There isn't."

"There is."

"There isn't."

This childish fight – with words, carried on for a few minutes. Ginny and Harry shared similar expressions of frustration and exasperation. Trust Ron to pick up a fight on Christmas Day. It was a special skill that only Ronald Weasley possessed.

Finally, Luna snapped. "Although you have not seen it before, it does not mean that they don't exist!"

Ron was taken aback. Luna very rarely lost her temper. His mouth opened and closed like a goldfish gulping for air. Then Ron forced his shock-induced brain to work and he scrambled an answer out of his mouth – which turned out to be a completely nonsensical one that would have made Hermione die of embarrassment. "But - but... they don't exist!"

Everyone's reactions were understandable. Harry sighed loudly and slapped his hand against his forehead repeatedly. _How much longer must this completely frivolous talk go on? _

Ginny clenched her eyes together tightly and tried very hard to refrain from hitting her brother on the back of his empty head. Her hand quivered as she fought the uncontrollable urge to whack Ron. _Maybe that sharp jolt might start up his brains, _she mused. Since she was unable to hit him, she settled for just imagining it. Not as good as reality, but it had to do for now. _Well, that's if he had any to begin with. _

Luna gave up. It was not worth her time. "Suit yourself then." In an attempt to change the topic of the conversation, she turned to Ginny and asked, "Pawsome, huh?" Luna tried to wash away the traumatising memory of her conversation with Ron. Sometimes, she did not know how Harry could decipher all his babbling. "Cute. But I'm sure there must be a reason why..."

Ginny had to smile. Luna knew her too well. " 'Some' because she's so 'awesome' and 'Paw' because she has really pretty paws." Ginny reached down and picked Pawsome up, holding one tiny little paw up for Luna to inspect. "Don't you think so?"

Luna looked down at the white-pinkish paws and smiled. "Yes, of course."

Pawsome meowed happily, enjoying all the attention that was being lavished upon her. After a while, it got really uncomfortable so Pawsome squirmed out of Ginny's hands and went over to Luna.

"Pure genius," Ron muttered sarcastically.

Ginny ignored his comment and set about opening her other presents. She did not want to ruin Christmas with a fight with Ron. From her mother, she had the usual Weasley jumper and some homemade treats.

Overall, she was quite pleased with all her presents. They included some sweets (from her brothers), tricks from Fred and George, a nice quill from Harry, a beautiful crystal necklace from Luna and, last but not least, an expensive leather-covered sketch book from Blaise.

She did not know why Blaise had gotten her that. She drew, but very rarely and Ginny never had a book to keep all her drawings in. They were left all over till she forgot about them. The only time she saw her old drawings was when they unexpectedly turned up in the depths of her closet or under all her stack of books.

Ginny picked up all her presents and went back upstairs tell Ron and Harry that she was going back to sleep before shutting the door. Being irritated with Ron, Luna followed suit. Laying her presents out on the table, she went back to her bed and pulled the blankets over herself.

* * *

It was a fairly good day. Well, it had to be good; after all, it was Christmas. But, no, Ginny's good day did not last into the evening. Her afternoon was fun and filled with laughter, but most unfortunately, Ginny had found herself face to face with the Ice King himself. 

This was how it happened...

Her warm brown eyes sparkled and shone like bright stars. It was right after lunch. Ginny watched with amazement as Pawsome played freely and excitedly around the common room, a dodge game with the 'Giants' that almost came crashing into her. Pawsome was like a blurry unsullied, pearly snowball tumbling all over the place.

"Meow!" An angry hiss emanated from her lips.

"Whoa! Ginny! That little pesky monster almost came crashing into my feet! Gormless furry monster!" Ron looking annoyed complained, hands on his hips.

"It's a case of the guilty calling the innocent guilty, Ron! Pawsome's a darling! She is not a monster... Haven't Hermione been telling you to keep your mouth shut! Don't be a clown, embarrassing yourself in front of us! And don't despise animals... Look who got a Troll for his Potions?"

As Ginny frowned and crouched to pick Pawsome up, who, mind you, was still glaring evilly at Ron, a tiny little black scroll dropped out from her opal collar. "What..." Ginny murmured. "I never noticed this before..."

Gingerly, but carefully, she slipped the note into her pocket almost instantaneously to prevent it from prying eyes and another bout of fiery argument with Ron, that miserable brother of hers.

A wave of positive panic overwhelmed her. _Was it a message from her anonymous, secretive gift-bearer?_

She whipped around and dashed to the girls' dorms, without apologizing a bit to Ron, whose ears were flashing as red as freshly ripened tomatoes. With tender, shivering fingers, she patiently undid the shimmering gold ribbons, and unrolled the note.

In the a slightly similar neat slanted scrawny black writing, her eyes scanned through the message:

_Dearest Ginny,_

_I've come to terms about a thing that is nagging my heart for the past few weeks. I would like to meet you in the Gardens on Christmas Day at eight. I won't leave till I see you. Hope you enjoy this exquisite present..._

_The Snow Guardian Angel_

A cold shiver ran down her spine. Trains of thought raced madly at her, every bit of her mind wanted to explode.

_Those tiny little hopes that she clung on to forever left her... Never to return._

"The Snow Guardian-Angel? It was typically a girl's nickname. "What? She's interested in me? EWW!" A look of disgust and unease was scribbled all over her face.

"Gin? What's wrong? Your face looks so pale!" Luna entered the room, staring at Ginny with a concerned expression on her face. Luna was flushed and panting a little. It was very obvious who she was with – Blaise.

"Look...look at this..." Ginny, her mouth open with disbelief and shock, wordlessly handed the note to Luna, who scanned through it quickly. "A girl's likes me..."

"So?" Luna said, a little impatiently. "I like you. And I'm a girl."

"No...no..." Ginny waved her hand somewhat desperately. "Not as a friend, more than that..." She looked at Luna and silently urged Luna with her eyes to understand what she was saying. She felt so nauseous; Ginny thought that if she said anything near to what she was thinking, she would probably throw up.

Understanding dawned in Luna's eyes. "What makes you think it's a girl? It could be a guy for all you know."

"What guy would call himself a..." Ginny reached out for the note in Luna's hand. "The Snow Guardian Angel?

'I don't know," Luna answered. "Maybe he couldn't think of anything else?"

"Right."

"Well, it's possible."

"Yeah... Can I add that it is only possible if your name is Ronald Weasley?" Ginny said, flinching and grimacing at the mere thought. "And I hate to think of Ron as my secret admirer. That's just gross. Sickening. Nauseating. Sick. Disgusting. Revolting. Repulsive. V-"

"Okay. Okay. That's enough examples." Luna said hurriedly before Ginny went on any further. If her mind was set to it, Ginny could go on till midnight. And that would not be good for Luna's delicate ears.

"What am I going to do?" Ginny moaned, running her hands through her hair in distress.

"Why don't you go meet him? Or her..." Luna corrected upon seeing Ginny's glare fixed upon her.

"That's crazy..."

"You saw it for yourself. He won't leave till you make a wonderful appearance. Or she won't leave."

"But I can't... it's just... just... so..."

"You have to go. If it's a girl that likes you, it's best if you tell her you are not interested. Don't just keep her waiting. It's not nice. If it's a guy, then it's a good thing, isn't it?" Luna reasoned.

"Luna, did I ever, in my whole entire life, do something that implied that I am not straight?"

"Well, I don't know about when you were one to ten years old..." Ginny glared at her fiercely while Luna carried on. "But I'm absolutely sure that in your five to six years here at Hogwarts, you have been completely normal."

"Merlin... What. Am. I. Going. To. Do." Ginny muttered, at the same time, hitting her head hard against the wall.

"Stop, Ginny. Stop." Luna went over and dragged a panting Ginny away from the dangerous weapon – the wall. "Banging your head against the wall is not going to help. It makes things worse because you might get a concussion." _Soft walls should have been built at Hogwarts,_ Luna thought with a sigh. Handling Ginny Weasley took a lot of skill and Luna was one of the very few that had that natural, inborn talent. "Calm down and think. Hitting your head will not help. The best thing you should do now is just grit your teeth and go. Bear with it. For all you know, you might meet your Prince Charming there."

"What if it's a Princess Charming?" Ginny wailed, exceedingly close to tears.

"Then..." Luna hesitated. "Just tell her you are not interested. Anyway, don't worry, I'll be there."

"You will?" Ginny looked up at her best friend, unshed tears shining in her eyes.

"Of course. You will pretend to go alone but I will be sneaking behind."

"Won't you be seen?" Ginny said skeptically. She had calmed down enough to regain the use of her brain.

"I'll use Harry's Invisibility Cloak. And I'll hide in the bushes or something."

"What if Harry does not lend it to us?"

"I'm sure he will."

"What would I do without you, Luna? You are the best!" Ginny flung her arms around Luna's neck, nearly strangling her with the amount of force Ginny was using.

"It's no problem. What are best friends for, right?" Luna focused on trying to breathe and patting Ginny on the head at the same time. It was not an easy job, but somehow, Luna managed it.

* * *

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this, Luna," whispered Ginny as she walked down the stairs. Luna was beside her, but under the Invisibility Cloak. Harry had very willingly lent it to them without even asking what it was for. He was busy staring at Ginny. No one knew why. 

"It's for your own good," Luna whispered, not wanting her voice to give blow her cover.

"Right..."

They reached the Gardens soon enough. For Ginny, it seemed like the route to the Gardens took much faster than usual. In a flash, she was there at her destination already.

"He should be here by now," Luna murmured quietly.

Ginny and Luna continued walking. Ginny saw a shadowed in front of them. It had to the person who sent her Pawsome. The figure did not look like a girl at all. The shape was lean, but even in the dark; she could see that it was slightly muscular. She felt Luna creep away behind the bushes as she walked up to the figure and lit up her wand. She walked closer, still unable to see the person's face.

Walking closer, she stared in shock. "Malfoy?"

"That's what they call me." He drawled, looking at Ginny. His facial expression did not betray his emotions. They were blank, as usual.

"What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing,"

Ginny rolled her eyes. Malfoy always had a way of evading questions. It was a very good skill she had to learn. "I'm here because I received an anonymous note telling me to come."

He merely shrugged.

"How about you?" Ginny asked.

"The same reason." He answered shortly.

Ginny frowned, thinking. She fitted the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind. "Are you 'The Snow Guardian Angel'?"

"What?" Malfoy gave her a skeptical look. "Are you sure you have not lost your mind, Weasley?"

"Of course not," said Ginny. "That was what the anonymous person signed off as..."

"And you thought it was me," Malfoy said, insulted. He crossed his arms across his chest.

"So it isn't you?" Ginny asked somewhat hopefully. She was very shocked when she had seen Malfoy there. Not to mention if her was the one who sent the note and Pawsome to her. If Ron found out, he would definitely freak out.

"Don't get your hopes up, Weasley." Malfoy flashed his trademark smirk.

Ginny's eyes widened. Her hopes had been dashed horribly. "So it's you?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Just when she thought it was not him, he dropped the bomb.

"Maybe."

"Really?" Ginny said, still not wanting to believe that it was actually Malfoy. She thought of how shocked Luna must be, listening to this enlightening conversation.

"Do you really think I would stoop to such low standards?" Malfoy replied, indignant that she actually had the audacity to think it was him.

"Thank goodness," Ginny breathed a sigh of relief. "For one moment, you got me there."

"I could tell." Malfoy smirked triumphantly.

Ignoring his proud smirk, Ginny asked, "Then who do you think sent me the note?"

"How am I supposed to know? I received one too, remember?" Malfoy said. "Or maybe it is the usual hot girls that cannot possibly resist my charms."

"Do you even have any? But –" Ginny was cut off by Malfoy. Some leaves rustled in the wind. He motioned for her to stay silent.

"Did you hear that?" Malfoy lowered his voice.

"Hear what?" Ginny said, her voice equally soft.

"That," He gestured to some bushes that were to Ginny's left. Some rustling sounds and muffled murmurings could be heard. It was very clear that the sounds came from there.

Malfoy crept towards the bushes; with Ginny following close behind Ginny knew it could not be Luna because she had felt Luna hide in the bushes that were to Ginny's right. So someone else was spying on them, but who? How did they know about the meeting?

He crept closer and in a swift movement, he looked over the bush. Malfoy looked down for a moment, his steely grey eyes flashing in the dim light. Slowly, then turned his head away to face her. What was it he saw?

Annoyance flashed clearly in his eyes. "Guess who it is?"

"It's a person?"

"Obviously," Malfoy rolled his eyes. "What did you think it was? A big, fat dragon?"

"No..." Embarrassed that she had make herself look like a fool in front of Malfoy, Ginny turned her head away and looked behind the bush. There, in all his glory, crouching behind the bush was Blaise Zabini.

"Ahh... I see you have caught me," Blaise calmly stood up and brushed some dried leaves off his pants.

Ginny narrowed her eyes. Something very suspicious was going on here. "What are you doing here? Picking flowers from the bushes?"

"Nope. If I wanted flowers, I will never pick them up from here," Blaise looked in distaste at the bush that he was hiding behind.

"Answer the question, Blaise," Ginny said through gritted teeth.

Malfoy stood there silently, watching the scene before him with growing amusement. Blaise would be in for it tonight.

"What question?" Blaise asked, trying to buy for more time.

"What are you doing here?" Ginny said, her hands on her hips and not even bothering to comment that she had to repeat herself twice.

Blaise, realising his plan was not working, decided that it was in his best interests that he told Ginny the truth immediately. "Spying?" He said, with the barest hint of nervousness in his voice.

"On?" Ginny said in a dangerous voice.

"You and Draco?" Blaise said in an exceedingly calm and collected manner.

"Why? You better explain yourself clearly now, Blaise," Ginny said in a dangerous voice. She was starting to boil with anger. Her fists clenched tightly, Ginny tried very hard to control her temper. If it were not for Luna, Blaise would have been hit already.

Recognising that tone in her voice, Blaise spoke quickly. "Well, on Christmas Day–"

"Hang on," Ginny interrupted as something dawned on her. "You were the one that sent me the stupid note, am I right?"

Blaise nodded dejectedly, like a small child whose Christmas presents were rudely snatched away from him. "And I sent one to Draco anonymously too..."

"What?" Malfoy burst out. This was the first thing he said ever since the 'discussion' started. His grey eyes narrowed till slits.

Blaise nodded again. He almost laughed upon seeing the look on Draco's face. It was weird that he looked quite similar to Ginny when the both of them did that. Obviously, he did not burst out laughing. If he did that, he might not live to see Luna tomorrow. It was a matter of life and death. Not that he was scared of dying, but he preferred dying on the battlefield or something compared to being beaten to death by a Malfoy and a Weasley. "I slipped a note into the cat Ginny received and I anonymously sent one to you," Blaise said, nodding at Draco.

"Blaise, don't you have anything better to do?" Malfoy hissed, coming closer towards Blaise, whose face was still undeniably calm.

"Nothing really. What possibly could be more fun than this?" Blaise smirked.

Ginny looked between the two boys. Now that she found out what actually happened, she calmed down a lot. This was the sort of thing you expected from Blaise. It was something the poor, deprived boy had to do, or he will go crazy. Wondering how in the world Blaise could survive for so long with that big mouth of his, Ginny decided that she better help to keep Blaise alive. She was dying to hit him too, but then if she did, Luna would be terribly devastated that Blaise went to the Hospital Wing in a critical condition because Ginny knew, from the look on Malfoy's face, that she was not the only one dying to hit him. Just as she was about to keep in-between the two boys, Luna's voice cut in.

"Now just what do you think you are doing to Blaise?" Luna said, stepping out from behind the bushes and pulling off the Invisibility Cloak.

"Luna to the rescue." Ginny sighed in relief. She did not know how she was going to stop two mad boys from killing each other.

Malfoy glanced up and saw Luna holding the Invisibility Cloak. "Should have known." He muttered. "I suppose that is Potter's, isn't it?"

Luna nodded and Malfoy screwed up his nose in disgust. "Gross."

Ginny had expected Luna to help. But what Luna said now stunned her completely.

"Now, where were you before I rudely interrupted?" Luna said brightly, grinning at Ginny's shocked expression.

* * *

A/N: Wheeeeeeee! And that's another chapter! Hope you liked it! Sorry for the long wait, I have been very busy for the past few days. 

Thanks for reviewing!

**_Lyskaelyn, Wolfheart Dragonwing, werecool, Flipinpenname, Helldarkangel1, Tattered.Broken.Angel, candycoated, seeker17, lulu, FireFantasma, EVERY.TiME.WE.TOUCH, Resentment, harrypotterchick4ever, Piggy2, mysmellyfeet, MorganisM-Lve, Raiast, fluffernutter, FanFicFanatick, Phoenix Feather Queen, BetterDeadThanAlone._**

As _BetterDeadThanAlone_ asked, the answer is, no, Draco is not smitten with Ginny. Yet. Haha. For _Raiast_, there's definitely going to be some note writing in the next chapter! I most solemnly swear that there will be. Haha.

Ok, if the scene that you sent in was not written in this chapter, don't worry, because I might use it for the later chapters! I wrote a poem on my livejournal (link is on my profile page), so have a look at it! Leave a comment! Haha. I'm currently writing a D/G oneshot called '_How Much More Must You Make Me Cry?_'. Keep an eye out for it!

All right, I'm interested to know which countries my readers are from, so leave me a review **saying** **the country/state you are from!**

I'll try to update really soon! Oh, and please review! (:


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13 **

'_Some secrets need to be kept,  
some stories should never be told,  
some reasons should not be understood.  
They just might turn your blood cold.'_

It had been a strange night.

Firstly, Ginny received a note, which seemed to be from a girl, asking Ginny to meet 'her' in the Gardens. Secondly, the person she was supposed to meet turned out to be Malfoy, which was utterly impossible since she could never imagine him calling himself 'The Snow Guardian Angel'. Thirdly, Blaise did not seem to be afraid of being murdered at the hands of his best friend. How ironic, really. And lastly, Luna definitely was not worried about her boyfriend's safety, going as far as to remind Malfoy about the moment when he was about to murder Blaise, before Luna so helpfully stepped in and saved him from his brutal fate.

Yesterday, after Luna had said her completely irreverent and very unhelpful comment, Ginny had managed to salvage the situation and to Ginny's utmost relief, everyone went back to their dormitories, safe and unharmed – meaning that they went back with all their limbs attached.

All this madness proved that the world was coming to an end soon. Like Professor Trelawney so aptly predicted thousands of times before. Maybe her predictions were actually accurate. One example of her predicting the world's end was happening now.

Ginny was feeling very suffocated. Who would not be after being stuck in Trelawney's sickly perfumed room for an hour? On the bright side, at least there was only half an hour left. She wondered how many bottles of perfume Trelawney had to buy each month, to fuel her excessive perfume obsession. Ginny certainly understood why Hermione had quit Divinations. She had to agree that it was a complete waste of time.

"Copy this down. It's very important. Note the points for crystal ball reading: go deep within yourself and find that..." said Professor Trelawney before scribbling some words on the board she just summoned up with her wand. "I have just looked into the crystal ball and I most regrettably have to mention," she paused dramatically. "That the world is coming to an end. The most terrible fates await all of you. You are all going to..." she said, in a spooky voice. "-Die."

Ginny rolled her eyes. As if she was going to copy that whole load of trash. All she had to do for the homework and tests was to make up some horrible predictions and she would pass. That was a golden tip from Ron had Harry, who did that and even surprisingly managed to top the class.

She rummaged in her bag for a parchment of some sort to aid her in her arduous quest of pretending to copy down the notes. While everyone else was copying down crap, she could actually do some drawing to ease her frustration at being stuck in the North Tower for what had seemed to be like an eternity.

Her boredom and frustration were the ones that etched the dark ink onto the parchment. On and on she drew, thin spidery lines appearing on the pure white of the parchment. Ginny continued drawing, sketching and roughing out the edges of the lines, creating a picture out of the thin black lines. The lines spread out and stretched across the paper. Finally, Ginny out her quill down and leaned back, admiring her handiwork. It was a masterpiece.

She looked over at Luna, who was not copying the notes down either. She was writing down her latest love note to Blaise. It was as if they did not see much of each other, they actually met up everyday. Looking back down at her drawing, Ginny smiled. It brought humor and happiness into her life by just looking at it. She decided to keep the drawing, instead of throwing it away, like she always did.

The picture depicted a very ruffled up Professor Trelawney standing on a grass patch, ranting and raving, wildly waving her hands all about. Her hair was all over the place and her huge round spectacles were crooked and dangling off her face. Her shawl was tangled around her, making her look like a giant bug in a cocoon.

There also drawn, in all their glory, were the very unrecognisable (due to Ginny's inaccurate drawing) Fred and George, flying on their brooms, pelting Trelawney with Dungbombs and Quaffles. They were wearing similar crazy expressions of insane laughter. Then, before Ginny eyes, the ink seeped into the parchment slowly, disappearing only to appear on the other part of the parchment, which someone else held.

_Oops. So much for wanting to keep the drawing, _Ginny thought sadly, as she watched the drawing disappear altogether. She had not realised that she had written on the charmed parchment.

Hopefully, the person was not a big supporter of Professor Trelawney, or she would be in deep trouble. Not that she cared or anything, but Ginny preferred to have less detentions as they wasted her precious time. As the saying goes, 'Once time has passed, you can never get it back'. She did not intend to ever regret doing something, believing in living her life to the fullest.

* * *

Draco Malfoy sat on a chair, listening to Professor McGonagall talk about the Switching Spell. At the same time, he idly twirled his expensive quill around his finger. Out of practise, he took out his charmed parchment and set it on the table. It had become a habit, after all these months, to place the parchment in his seeing view, so that if any message were to appear, he would be noted of it.

He had actually considered initiating the conversation first a few times already, but always, his pride had won, and so he waited for the girl whom her had been talking to for almost six or seven months to send him a message first. This time was no different.

He knew, by first hand experience, that she usually only messaged him in the later part of the day or in the evening, but he saw no harm in placing the parchment on the table, in case, just in case, she sent a message to him. Professor McGonagall went on and on about what would be tested in the N.E.W.T.s. Malfoy fixed his eyes on the tip of McGonagall's hat, watching it sway back and forth as she walked up and down.

"Mr Malfoy." Her voice cracked through the silent classroom like a whip. "Are you paying attention to what I was saying?"

"Of course."

"Repeat what I was saying then," she said, watching him closely out of her hawk-like eyes.

Malfoy heard some very loud sniggering behind him. No doubt Potty and the Weasel King were having a good laugh at his expense. How dare they?

He noted that Granger was not laughing. He had always preferred her to the rest of the Golden Trio. Not that he really liked her or anything (he still thought she was a bossy know-it-all), he felt that even though she was a Mudblood, she had earned every right to be a witch, unlike her lousy good-for-nothing friends, who did not deserve to be wizards at all. Granger, he felt, though being a Mudblood, surprisingly had some good qualities that he admired. Like a high level of tolerance, for instance. It took someone with an incredible amount of patience to tolerate the stupidity of Potty and the Weasel King. For that, he respected her.

"You were saying, Professor," Malfoy said in a calm tone. "That Switching Spells were very important and would definitely be tested in the exams." Almost immediately, the sniggering ceased.

Professor McGonagall relaxed. Mr Malfoy had passed her test. "Good. Now let us carry on."

Blaise turned at looked at his friend. "Close one, mate."

"Too close," Malfoy agreed.

Malfoy then looked down at his parchment. He saw lines appearing out of the parchment. Dark inky lines spread and covered the paper like a wave. Slowly, the lines rearranged themselves and formed a picture. Wondering what in the world it was, Malfoy took a closer look. Evidently, the person whom he communicated with was no fan of Professor Trelawney. But then again, who was? Unless it was those two giggling girls from Gryffindor. What were their names again? Petal and Brown? He could not really remember.

Checking to see if McGonagall was looking, he wrote a message.

**_Brilliant piece of art. Magnificent. _**

_Thank you. _The message appeared a few minutes later.

_**You should frame it up. **_

_And put it in a museum? _

_**That is a good idea. **_

_I rather keep it, thank you. _

_**Keep that great masterpiece to yourself? **_

_Now we are talking along the same lines. _

_**How selfish. **_

_Nope, I prefer to hear myself live to a ripe old age, rather than hear predictions of my brutal death, that's all. _

**_So, can I make the assumption that you are in Divinations now? _**

_Maybe you can, maybe you can't. I could have been drawing it in another class._

**_Or you could have been drawing it during Divinations. But not to worry, I won't tell her anything. In fact, I think she's just an old bat. _**

_I agree. _

**_You agree with me? I have always known you have a thing for me. _**Malfoy grinned inwardly at this.

_What? The only 'thing' I have for you is a slap if you get too close. _

**_Don't play coy. I know you know that you like me. _**

_You obviously do not know what I know. _

**_Come on, admit it. We are so much alike, you and I. I and you. _**

_Except for a sense of decency and moral centre. Oh, how could I have almost forgot? It includes personal hygiene. _

**_Trifles. By the way, the personal hygiene statement is a completely untrue and unjust comment. I am very sure you will come over to my side in no time. _**

_You seem very certain. _

**_Yes, I am. _**

_Do you really think I would go over, to what you have described as 'your side'? _

**_I don't think so. I know so. _**

_Keep knowing then. Too bad it will never happen. _

_**It will. **_

_Don't bet on it. _

**_I will. _**

_Never in my wildest dreams or most magical fantasies have I imagined myself going over to 'your side'. _

**_There's always a first time for everything. _**

_True. _

**_I knew you would see it my way. _**

_You wish, imbecile. _

_**Excuse me? I am further from the term imbecile than you. **_

_As if. It must have only occurred in your dreams then. _

_**Did you know dreams have a chance of coming true? **_

_I would say yes if you were Professor Trelawney? Which, by the way, are you? _

_**Do not insult my intelligence. **_

_You have intelligence? _

**_Of course. In more abundance then you, I am afraid. _**

_Oh, really? _

_**Yes, really. **_

_I do not think so. _

**_I think so. _**

_So what if you think so? _

**_That means it is true. _**

_It does not mean that whatever you ' think so' is true. _

_**It does mean that way. **_

_No, it does not. _

_**Yes it does. **_

_No, it does not. _

_**Yes it does. **_

_Fine, I am not going to stoop to such low levels to bicker childishly like you. _

**_Are you saying I am childish? _**

_As a matter of fact, I am. _

_**Okay. **_

_Just 'okay'? No witty comeback? No sarcastic comment? _

_**No, Grandmother. **_

_What did you call me? _

_**Nothing, Grandmother. **_

_If I am a grandmother then perhaps you should be in your coffin already, skeleton. _

**_Who know, maybe I am? _**

_Wow! You are writing to me in your grave. Interesting. _

**_I know. I am so interesting that even maggots check me out. _**

_They must be blind then. _

_**Nope. In fact, they find me perfectly edible. **_

_Yeah, so much so they eat you and leave behind the bones. _

**_What can I say? True love... _**

_If that is your version of true love, it is no wonder that you are in your grave already. How is it there? Cosy? _

_**Perfectly. **_

_How are the earthworms? _

_**Good, they actually like me. **_

_How extraordinary! Earthworms like you when normal human don't. _

**_I am very likable, as you can see for yourself. _**

_The only thing I see is a tremendously arrogant git. _

_**Is that what you think of me? **_

_I am afraid so. _

**_Pity. I was tempted to change my ways, but your description showed me how beautiful and flawless I was, so I have decided against it. _**

_And I am supposed to be crying in regret at my hideous mistake? _

_**If you want to. **_

_I do not want to. _

**_Then don't. No one was asking you to. You suggested it yourself. _**

_I guess I did..._

**_Now she realises..._**

_I knew it a long time ago. _

_**As if. **_

_It is true. _

**_I do not believe you. _**

_Believe what you will. _

Malfoy paused, sensing a shadow hovering nearby; he quickly sat up straight and pretended to be listening. Professor McGonagall walked nearer and he could hear the snickers starting again. Professor McGonagall walked closer moved closer to Malfoy's table.

Evidently, while he was writing, someone had knocked on the door and requested to speak to McGonagall. Now, she made her way towards Malfoy's desk. He mentally braced himself for a good scolding before looking up defiantly. But instead, Professor McGonagall's voice was unusually soft and understanding when she spoke. "Headmaster wants to see you in his office, Mr Malfoy. Password is Chocolate Frogs."

Malfoy nodded and stuffed the parchment into his pocket. As he walked to the door, he gave Potty and Weasel an icy glare before disappearing behind it. He made his way there quickly, wondering why Dumbledore had called him to his office. Surely it was not for a cup of tea and a few Sherbet Lemons?

He reached there soon enough. "Chocolate Frogs," he muttered, thinking who in their right minds would choose that password. Walking down the corridor, he found the door that led to Dumbledore's office. He had been there once, when Lucius dragged him there to show the wounds the Hippogriff made on him, just to get Hagrid fired. Feeling sense of foreboding, he twisted the doorknob and opened the door.

Professor Dumbledore's office was exactly the same as it had been a couple of years back. He sat on his chair, currently deep in thought. Malfoy strode in and stood directly in front of Dumbledore.

"Ah... Mr Malfoy. Take a seat." He motioned to a comfy looking chair.

Malfoy sat down stiffly. _This had better be an issue of great importance. _

"Sherbet Lemon?" The Headmaster offered, holding a bowl of yellow sweets in front of Malfoy, who shook his head.

"Let's get down to business then, shall we?"

Malfoy nodded his head and waited for the old wizard to carry on.

"As everyone know, the Order of the Phoenix is a group against Voldemort." Dumbledore paused.

Malfoy did not even bat an eyelid at the sound of Voldemort's name. He had heard the name too many times. It was enough to last him a lifetime.

"A few days ago, two spies were sent out to one of the main Death Eater hideouts. They overheard some quite important news-" Dumbledore peered at Malfoy through his glasses and looked at him gravely. "-Concerning you."

_Concerning him? What was there to talk about him? _"What?"

"It might be very shocking but they overheard Lucius telling Voldemort to take you in as a Death Eater once you left school. He also said–"

"I know what else he would say," Malfoy interrupted. That little piece of news had made his anger and frustration rise up quickly in him. "He said that it would be a great honour for me to serve Voldemort and that I would be one of the most loyal servants, willing to do anything for the cause. Am I right?"

"Yes. It was something along the lines of that."

Malfoy was not surprised or shocked at the news. Angry, frustrated, yes. But not shocked. It was as if some part of him already knew what was going to happen. The idea just did not register in his head yet. All his life, Lucius had been drilling it into him: the qualities of a Death Eater. His mother, Narcissa, had not approved of it, but what could she do against Lucius?

At first, he was proud that he was chosen to follow in his father's footsteps. Proud, to serve Voldemort when he grew up. But all that ended when his father brought him to his first Death Eater meeting. Only Death Eaters with the Dark Mark were allowed to enter, but being the son of Lucius Malfoy, Voldemort's second in command, they made an exception for him.

He enjoyed all the attention being lavished upon him at first. But when the star event of the night came, he then found out that everything he thought of the Death Eaters were wrong. For the Death Eaters' entertainment, a young muggle boy, slightly younger than Malfoy at that time, was brought in to stand in the middle of the whole crowd of Death Eaters.

He had a dirt-streaked face and wore ragged and torn clothes. It was obvious that he had been starved for about a week or so. The boy was so thin; the ten-year-old Malfoy could see the bones underneath his thin, translucent skin. The boy looked around, at the mobs of Death Eaters that were surrounding him, clearly unsure of where he was.

"Who wants to start first?" A Death Eater called loudly. "No one yet? I will do it then." Cackling madly, he took out his wand. "_Crucio._"

The boy dropped to his knees and cried out in pain. The growing laughter and cackling of the crowd soon muffled his cries. Malfoy watched, his face clean of expression. But inside, the young Malfoy was filled with confusion. What did the boy do wrong to deserve that kind of torture? But he knew better than to voice his opinions.

"Enjoying the show, son?" Lucius Malfoy came to stand behind his son.

Malfoy just nodded dumbly, not trusting himself to speak at the moment. For a brief moment, Malfoy caught the boy's eye. The boy stared at him, raw pain clearly reflected in his eyes. Then suddenly, the light in his eyes disappeared and the boy fell to the ground, dead. A few Death Eaters kicked the body, to see if the boy was really dead. Satisfied with what they did, they broke into laughter as some other Death Eaters dragged the dead body away.

The moment was etched in his memory forever. It was why he was one of the few students in Hogwarts that could see Thestrals.

Since then, his priorities changed completely. It was no longer learning how to please Voldemort for him. He was not a follower of Voldemort; neither was he a supporter of Voldemort. He was like in the middle, neither black nor white. He was like grey, not completely dark but not completely light either.

"There will be a time, Mr Malfoy," Dumbledore looked at Malfoy knowingly, his voice breaking through Malfoy's thoughts. "When you have to make a decision. When you stand before the forked road that splits into two, one running to the left the other, to the right. Once you have made that choice, there will be no turning back."

Malfoy's eyes snapped out to meet Dumbledore's. He knew what Dumbledore was going on about. "Are you asking me to choose the Order?" He snarled, eyes narrowed.

"No," Dumbledore said gently. "I am telling you to make the a right decision when the time comes."

* * *

Ginny watched as Malfoy paced up and down the lake edge, a frown creasing his forehead. He was grabbing fistfuls of his robes in frustration. She had been there long enough to see him pace back and forth the lake edge for about twenty times. Obviously, he was upset about something. She had expected him to notice her once she sat down behind him, but to her surprise, he had not.

"Why the foul mood, Malfoy?" Ginny asked.

He whipped around and saw her gazing at the sunset. The water in the lake reflected the rays of the setting sun onto her face, making her auburn hair practically glow.

"You would not even understand if I told you!" He spat. "Now get lost, Weasley!"

Ginny shrugged and walked off. It was not like she was expecting that kind of reply. For weeks, he had been very tolerant of her, sometimes even being nice, by his standards. Ginny doubted that it would last very long and she had been right. Nevertheless, she still could not help being a little hurt at his rude reply. If he had not been so tolerant of her, she would not have felt his way now. It was as if he had a different side to him. With growing mortification, Ginny know realised that she actually liked that side. The nicer, more tolerant side of him.

"Wait..." His voice came from behind her.

Turning around, Ginny looked at him.

"Haven't you felt...stressed?"

_What kind of question is that? _Ginny thought. Still, she answered it. "Of course. I have to study for my N.E.W.T.s, which is next year."

"No!" Malfoy said loudly in frustration. "I – you -" He took a deep breath. "Have you done anything against your will? Someone forcing you to do something you don't approve of?"

"Erm… My brother forced me to eat a snail once..."

"No! You don't understand!" He snapped, turning his back to face her.

Against her better judgment, her feet brought her next to Malfoy. He did not turn to face her, but continued looking at the lake. Looking out at the lake too, she prompted seriously, "Okay... Go on..."

* * *

A/N: Credit goes to _thechosenMay _for the scene at the lake. Oh, there is a scene in this chapter that is actually from a movie. It is not exactly word for word, but the general idea is there. Not telling you what it is... Hmm... What question should I ask for the poll thing? Let me think...

I know!

**Do you think Malfoy will tell Ginny about the news that he heard from Dumbledore? And what movie was that specific scene from?**

Yes? No? You tell me (To the first question).

Thanks to these people who reviewed:

**_x0xdreamergurlx0x, werecool, Zoe, MorganisM-Lve, Anon., VaguelyInnocent, lulu, harrypotterchick4ever, GinDracofan208, lorina, Eternal Rhapsody, beckysue2, dobbyfan18, LoVeAngel97, Resentment, Flipinpenname, QueenThayet, seeker17, BellaMuerte13, Miss Black, FireFantasma, Tomsgirl2005, EVERY.TiME.WE.TOUCH, what this, Raiast, FanFicFanatick , Belle Princesse168, I'm Blond. James Blond., candycoated._**

As _beckysue2_ and _LoVeAngel97_ asked, the kitten is from Draco, but Blaise managed to slip the note into the collar.

By the way, I have posted _'How Much Must You Make Me Cry' _already. I am so happy just to say Chapter 14. It has been a so long since I wrote Chapter 1. Anyway, hope you have a nice day!

Please please review! Pretty please?


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14 **

'_I am a million contradictions._

_Sometimes I make no sense_

_Sometimes I am perfect_

_Sometimes I am a mess_

_Sometimes I am not sure who I am.'_

Malfoy sat, staring at the sunset, making to attempt to address Ginny. He could feel her looking at him; still he stubbornly turned his head away so as not to face her. Thoughts were whirling through his mind. Was he to tell her or not?

Ginny did not know how long she sat there, beside Malfoy. She had wanted to leave so many times. However, her bottom stayed strangely stuck to the ground. She suspected that without her knowledge, he must have cast a spell on the ground or laid some very sticky glue on the ground for her to sit on and get stuck.

That notion helped to clear her confused thoughts as to why in the world was she not getting as far away as possible from Malfoy or at the very least, make up some excuses to get away from him.

Yes, she grudgingly had to admit. He had been surprising civil to her in the past few months. But he was a Malfoy, nothing more and nothing less. Sooner or later, he would revert back to his mean, old nasty ways. Why was he being so nice to her? Not calling her a 'Mudblood' lover just once was considered nice by his standards already. And Ginny could count, on one hand, the number of times he had said that to her this year.

_Once? Maximum twice? Possibly even zero? Maybe he was just being nice to you because his best friend is dating yours? _A voice at the back of her head answered.

Ginny hated to admit it, but that statement was like a hard slap in the face. The accuracy, speed and the amount of pain it produced were so alike. It was... painful that after so long of Malfoy's likeable behavior, she had found out the reason behind it. The bare facts of life were certainly painful.

Finally, she willed herself to prepare to stand up. It was apparent Malfoy did not want her here and she did not want to impose her presence on him.

"What would you do if someone forced you to do something against your will?" He asked, grey eyes staring at hers.

Ginny settled back down on the grass. So, he did want her here, after all. "I would do what I want to do, what I think feels right."

"But what if you can't say no; you have no choice but to join them." He countered.

That statement all at once confirmed Ginny's suspicions. She sighed heavily. "Let me guess, Lucius Malfoy wants you to join the ranks of the Death Eaters and serve Voldemort. Am I right?"

His eyes narrowed immediately and he did a quick three hundred sixty degree sweep around them, checking if anyone had heard Ginny. No one was around. Malfoy grabbed Ginny's wrist in a vicious grip and hissed, "What makes you think so?"

Ginny winced. She could actually _feel _her wrist turning white from the lack of blood. Malfoy had a really strong grip. However, she did not let her shock appear on her features, instead, hiding her emotions under a mask worthy of Malfoy. "The fact that Lucius Malfoy is an alleged Death Eater and that you are so upset kind of fits the puzzle."

"I am not upset over anything," he snarled angrily. What did she know about his feelings?

"Don't lie, Malfoy." Ginny said calmly. "I can see it all in your eyes."

"There is nothing in my eyes to see except for ice," he growled, full of malice.

She stared back, refusing to give in. "If I were you, I would not listen to the mindless drones urging me to do something I don't want to do. Listen to what's inside here, Malfoy-" Ginny hesitantly placed her free hand on the left side of his chest. Much to her relief, he did not yell at her or jump away. He did not even flinch or bat an eyelid. His face was impassive, blank. She saw something flicker in his grey eyes before it disappeared as quickly as it came. "Listen to your heart..."

Ginny yanked her hand away from his loosening grip in a sudden movement. She stood up quickly before Malfoy could get a hold on her again. Walking away from him, Ginny turned around for a moment and called back to him.

"There's a lot more than ice in your eyes, Malfoy. Believe me."

Without waiting for a reply, she swept around and headed back to the castle, leaving Malfoy beside the lonely lake, all by himself.

* * *

Days came and went. Ginny did not talk, or by any means communicate with Malfoy ever since the day she talked to him at the lake. If she were waiting for him to seek her out, she would be sorely disappointed, for he did not even give any indication that their 'discussion' ever happened. In fact, he ignored it completely, as if it were nothing but a daydream. 

One could not say Ginevra Weasley was upset or angry. It is because she simply was not at all. She knew that after that little talk, they would probably never talk to each other again. She had considered telling Harry and the others that Malfoy was to become a Death Eater, but after much deliberation, she decided against it. It was no her place to tell anyone and frankly speaking, it was very well known amongst the members of the Order (including Harry, Ron and Hermione) that Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy was to become a Death Eater once he left school. So, the news was not a very big deal at all.

Ginny sat on an armchair beside the fireplace, idly stroking Pawsome's fur. So far, the kitten had not eaten or drunk anything besides milk, milk and more milk. This had resulted in numerous trips to the kitchens so much so a very pleasant house-elf had volunteered to bring the milk up to the Gryffindor common rooms whenever Pawsome wanted it. The house-elf, whose name was Twinkly, has taken such a liking to Pawsome, she even asked Ginny whether she could feed and play with Pawsome when Ginny was not around. Of course, Ginny agreed. Pawsome could get pretty lonely when she was not around.

Hermione showed her disapproval of Ginny's actions by clicking her tongue and making an annoying '_tsk_' sound every time Pawsome or Ginny walked past her or even came close.

"Hey Ginny." Ron came through the portrait door and plopped himself on the armchair tiredly.

"Hey," said Ginny. "What's going on?" she gestured towards Hermione who had just came through the portrait door, levitating a few hundred of box-like things and carrying about twenty of them in her arms as well.

Ron rushed out of his seat to help Hermione and soon the box-like things were safely on the floor, piled up in stacks.

"Hello," Hermione said brightly, brushing some dust off her hands. Maybe the box-like things had helped in letting Hermione momentarily forget about the house-elf issue.

"What are those?" Ginny asked, pointing to the pile. From there, Ginny could make out the white, pink and red colours of the boxes. They also seemed to be in a weirdly contorted shape from where Ginny was sitting.

"Oh. Those?" Hermione answered, sitting on the armchair next to Ron's. "Those are for raising funds."

"Raising funds?" Ginny said. "Please do not tell me those are for SPEW, Hermione."

"It is not SPEW," she snapped, her bright demeanor suddenly vanishing. "It is S-P-E-W. It stands for-"

"Okay, okay," Ron cut in. "We know what it stands for."

"What then?" Hermione asked testily.

"Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare." Both Ginny and Ron replied at the same time.

"Good." Hermione said, her frown fading slightly. "We are raising funds for St. Mungos. Due to the upcoming Valentine's Day, we prefects have decided to hold a fund raising event by selling chocolates."

"Those are chocolates?" Ginny asked incredulously. "Looks more like deformed-" She paused. "-Things to me."

"Those are not deformed things," Hermione replied hotly, immediately coming to the defence of her own handiwork. "They are wrapped chocolate boxes."

"Okay..." Ginny went over and took a box in her hands. "Did you wrap these, Hermione?"

"Yes..." Hermione said, turning slightly pink at the cheeks.

"Erm..." Ginny looked at the mess in her hands again. "Do you need my help in wrapping?"

A few long hours later, Ginny sighed and leaned back into the chair, closing her eyes to relax. She had taught Hermione how to wrap the chocolate boxes properly and did a fair share of wrapping herself. Now, the boxes did not look so contorted anymore, on the contrary, they looked like expensive, nice, chocolate boxes that were usually sold in fancy and professional shops.

"So how does this thing work?" Ginny asked Hermione. Ron had gone up to bed a long time ago. Harry also came in and commented on how nice they were, before going up to bed too.

"Well, the red box is the smallest and costs one Galleon. The pink is medium and the red is large. They cost three and five Galleons respectively. Oh yes, there will be a small card included. The chocolates will be delivered during Breakfast on Valentine's Day."

"Cool." Ginny said. "You thought of it, I suppose?"

"Yes," Hermione replied, turning rather pink again. She seemed to be trying not to look to pleased with herself.

"It's a good idea." Ginny nodded.

Hermione was silent for a while. "You know... I was just wondering... Do you think I would receive any chocolates? Not that I am bothered or anything, but I am just thinking that-"

Ginny cut into Hermione's awkward rambling. "I am sure you will, Hermione." She said kindly. "One, I'm sure, at the very least."

"Come on, Ginny. You know I won't." Hermione stated matter-of-factly.

Ginny sighed. How could Hermione, the smartest witch of her year, be so blind to the people around her? It was so obvious to everyone except her Ron and her that they liked each other. Digging deep into her well of patience, Ginny replied, "You _will, _Hermione. Trust me, because I know who's going to give you one..." She dangled the bait in the air.

"Who?" Her eyes lit up.

"From a person who has liked you since your second year..." Ginny teased.

"Who is?" Hermione repeated, starting to get impatient.

"Now, now, Hermione. Patience is a virtue." Ginny said in a teacher-like voice, with apparent similarity to Professor McGonagall.

"Get on with it, Ginny!" Hermione said, her patience wearing thin.

"All right. And don't deny it once I tell you. Starts with a _R, _ends with a_ N._"Ginny grinned.

Hermione blushed. "What about you? I bet you'd receive at least one."

"As if."

"I know you will."

"How do you know?" Ginny retorted.

"I just do." Hermione said, sticking her nose in the air, with a fake snobbish accent.

"I won't get one. Guaranteed." Ginny laughed.

"Fine." Hermione smiled mischievously. "But we shall see when the time comes."

* * *

As it turned out, Ginny received not one, but two boxes of chocolates. Hermione received one from Ron, just as Ginny predicted. Luna, not surprisingly, received a box of chocolates from Blaise. When Ginny teased her, she blushed and insisted that she had bought him chocolates first and that was the reason why he had bought her one back in return. 

Ron was being a little paranoid over Ginny's boxes of chocolates. What was there to be paranoid about? He had, after all, sent one to Hermione.

"Who's that from?" Ron asked, just as soon as the fourth-year prefect delivered a pink box to Ginny.

Ginny picked up the card and skimmed through it.

_Dearest Ginny, _it read. _I hope you like the chocolates and the rose. Have a Happy Valentine's Day. Love, Colin Creevy. _

"Colin Creevy?" Ron exclaimed, reading the card from over Ginny's shoulder. He glanced at Colin, who was currently snapping pictures of Lavender and Parvati. "Isn't that the midget-like first year who was, is obsessed with taking your picture?" He asked Harry.

"He's not in his first year anymore, Ron. And far bigger than a midget now, I'd think." Harry answered.

"Oh. Right." Ron then carried on talking to Harry about the latest Quidditch news.

Ginny rolled her eyes. When the prefect passed Ginny a red box this time, she made sure Ron was too busy talking to Harry to notice, which was good for her because if he found out exactly who had sent her the chocolates, he'd most probably go ballistic. Trying to ignore Hermione's I-told-you-so look, she unwrapped the transparent wrapper to take a look at the card inside. There were only three words written on it.

_Thank you. _

_D.M._

As far as Ginny knew, there was only one person in Hogwarts who had that initials. She looked across the hall and spotted Malfoy talking to Blaise. Parkinson leaned over and tried to whisper something her minute brain obviously thought was seductive into Malfoy's ear. She even caressed his hair with her hands. Ginny's stomach lurched horribly and she lost all her appetite even though the breakfast served was her favourite. To her immense satisfaction, Malfoy irritably swatted her hand away as if it was nothing but a worthless fly. He snapped some rude remark at her and moved closer to Blaise, giving Parkinson a disdainful look.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped up from his plate and connected with hers. Ginny boldly stared back, trying to ignore the strange fluttering in her stomach that had replaced the nauseous feeling she had earlier on. Then to her dismay, Ron tapped her on her shoulder. She sighed, breaking eye contact with Malfoy and turning around to face her brother.

"Now who's that from?" Ron asked, visibly annoyed.

Immediately, Ginny snapped the card shut to prevent Ron from looking at it. "I don't know. It's anonymous."

Ron just grunted a reply and turned back to his food.

* * *

Ginny stared at the red box of chocolates in front of her. The chocolate box that Colin had given her was just lying on the other side of her bed. However, the red box was different, it was... special. Gently tugging on one end of the ribbon, she undid the knot and delicately placed the long lace ribbon on her bed covers, cushioning the exquisite ribbon from any harm. 

She picked up the crimson heart-shaped box and opened the lid. Ten little pieces of milk chocolates greeted her. She was so absorbed on admiring these delicate pieces of art that she forgot about her Potion's assignment till Luna asked to see hers.

"Oh no..." Ginny gasped. "I think I left it in the library." She had been so excited about Valentine's Day, she forgot all about her assignment.

"Go get it now!" Luna urged. "Or face Snape tomorrow!"

Ginny had to admit; facing Snape was one of the most horrifying experiences that a student could go through, unless you were a Slytherin. Then the situation would be different. Nodding frantically, she threw on her cloak and ran out of the Gryffindors dormitories, only stopping to borrow Harry's Invisibility Cloak, which he gladly agreed to lend her, and dashing towards the library.

All could be heard from one of the corridors near the library was a loud panting sound coming from an invisible source. Anyone who walked past could swear Peeves had invented a new trick to scare the wits out of them.

Ginny crept towards the last section of the library, where she left her assignment. Out of the blue, she became acutely aware of the hair on her neck prickling uneasily, as if... as if someone or something was creeping up on her.

_It's all just a figment of my imagination_, she tried to convince herself, as she looked around helplessly under the cloak only to see no one or monster of any sort. Maybe it was better risk Snape's unfair punishment and to go back, in one piece to her dormitories. Curse Snape and his prejudice, or she would be lying in her bed now, perhaps eating some of her chocolates, with no need to worry about anything.

No. She had come to far to give up now.

Ginny moved closer to the tables. And the strange sensation of not being alone in the library flooded her again. Pushing aside those feelings, she looked around in the semi-darkness. In her haste, she forgot to bring a lamp. Now, she had to rely upon the faint moonlight shining in from the windows to see. Where was her assignment? She was sure she had left it there. Scanning the tabletops, Ginny found that her assignment was nowhere to be seen. She circled around and looked again but she still could not find it.

A clang echoed loudly somewhere off in the darkness. Ginny froze. Her instincts had been right all along; she was not alone.

She backed away from the tables slowly. She needed to get out of there now. Her heart palpitating wildly, she turned around and prepared to run off; only to find herself hitting some invisible rock in the air and falling on her back.

Mid-air, a silvery cloak slipped off and revealed Ginny's 'invisible rock'. She felt her cloak slide off her. She was going to hit the floor on her back, with the unknown force pushing her from the front. It happened so quickly, there was not even enough time for her to be shocked. They fell to the ground with a thud and before any of them knew it, Draco Malfoy's lips were on hers.

_Merlin_, she thought. So this is what it felt like, to be kissing Draco Malfoy. Her eyes widened at the realisation of her wild thoughts. Blinking back the crazy thoughts form her head, Ginny tried to focus on what to do next. All right. Stay calm, she reasoned. But how was she supposed to stay calm with her brother's blonde nemesis lying on top of her? Not only that, but kissing her as well. What would it look like if someone entered the room now? This certainly did not bode well.

Ginny felt like she was underwater, with the difficulty of moving her limbs. Malfoy, apparently, was just as shocked as her. Unlike her, who had a hard time trying to move her limbs, he could move his pretty well; judging from the way his arms were flailing now in an attempt to get off her.

After what seemed to be an eternity (a perfectly heavenly eternity, in Ginny's opinion), Malfoy managed to get himself off her. He clambered off and sat leaning against one of the bookshelves with considerable grace. Why he did not run off, Ginny had to idea. Ginny sat up shakily, crossed her legs Red Indian style and faced him. Seeing Malfoy sitting on the floor, leaning on the dusty shelves, he seemed different than the usual Malfoy who strutted around the school.

"You all right?" Ginny asked, at a loss to say anything else.

Malfoy stared at her for a moment, grey eyes glinting in the faint moonlight that was streaming through the glass. "What do you think?" He scowled at her. "Your lips broke my fall."

"Well, at least it wasn't the dusty floor you had to lay your precious lips on," said Ginny, offended. "Would you rather my lips or the floor?"

"Frankly," he said. "The floor."

"Suit yourself then." Ginny said frostily. They were silent for a while. "What were you doing here, anyway?" She asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"What were _you _doing here?"

"I asked you first," Ginny retorted, even though she knew he would not answer her till she told him her reason first. She sighed, droning on. "I'm here to retrieve my assignment, or I'll be in trouble tomorrow."

"Not very popular among the teachers, are you?" He drawled, smirking his usual smirk at her.

"Unlike you, Snape's pet hamster."

"Excuse me?" Malfoy replied, affronted at her comment.

"You are excused."

"I'm _far _from being a hamster," He said supremely. "Especially Snape's pet hamster. I'd-"

"Pardon me for my mistake," Ginny cut in. "I think you would more likely be Snape's pet _ferret_ than a cute, innocent hamster."

"Better than Flitwick's pet weasel."

"Weasels are cute. Not like mean, nasty ferrets."

"Ferrets are cuter. Not like mean, nasty weasels." The ends of his mouth curved upwards as he mimicked her.

"Weasels are still cuter."

"Ferrets are cuter."

"Weasels are cuter."

"Ferrets are cuter."

The childish squabbling carried on for a few minutes till Malfoy gave in. "Either ways, both have a head, four legs and a tail."

"Do I sense someone giving in?" Ginny grinned evilly.

"Never."

"All right. I suppose they are _quite _similar after all..." She conceded. She could not believe she had a debate with Malfoy on whether ferrets or weasels are cuter. That was utterly ridiculous, particularly with him involved. Just a few minutes ago, she had the strangest sensation that she knew him. It was just the way he spoke just now that reminded her of someone she knew...

"Malfoy?" Ginny did not think that the name 'Malfoy' really suited him now. He was not like his usual 'Malfoy-ish' self, instead being a rather nice person and not a bad conversationalist at all.

A gruff 'who's there' interrupted their conversation. Jumping up, Malfoy grabbed his cloak and pulled it around himself, covering Ginny as well. A familiar scent enveloped her. "Is this your cloak?"

"Yes, now be quiet." He muttered back in response.

Ginny now knew how Blaise had managed to lend them an Invisibility Cloak during the party.

"Who's there?" A bright light shone unexpectedly right in front of the invisible Malfoy and Ginny, illuminating Flich's nervous face. He was so close to them that Ginny could make out the several white strands of hair on his head. Backing away slowly, they waited till Flich had gone away muttering to himself about Peeves, before Ginny quickly ducked under the cloak and came back having retrieved her assignment. She had spotted it hiding under one of the chairs when Flich was snooping around.

"We've to go," said Ginny, making for the exit.

Nodding, Malfoy pulled her away from the direction in which she was heading to. "I know a shortcut."

Shortcut? There was a shortcut to the library? If this happened to her years before, she would have thought it was a ploy to kidnap her or something. But now, everything was different, somehow or another. Deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt, she let him lead her to whatever shortcut he had in mind.

Sure enough, after a few twists and turns along the passageways, Ginny found herself standing at the fork where her dormitories lay on the left and his dormitories lying on the right, all under five minutes.

Malfoy pulled his cloak off them. "Well, I guess this is the end of our midnight rendezvous." He smirked at Ginny. "Bye then." He turned around. Just as he was about to go in the way of his dormitories, a voice made him stop in his tracks and turned around.

"Draco..."

Ginny did not know what in the world possessed her to call him by his first name; but she liked the way his name rolled off her tongue. _Draco. _It felt nice... right... He stilled and faced her, his face now an impassive blank; poles apart from the person she had been talking, having so much fun with just now. She could see the walls in his eyes rising up again, all because of one word.

It was like she had no control over her body's movements at all, as if she was put under the Imperius Curse. Ginny walked toward him, coming closer with each step. Standing right up close to Draco, she raised her head and gently brushed her lips against his surprisingly warm cheek.

Draco blinked in shock, which was a vast improvement if you asked Ginny because he rarely, no, never showed his emotions to anyone before, always keeping his face hidden behind a mask of indifference.

"Goodnight then. It was nice meeting you." Ginny turned and walked away in the direction of her dormitories. "By the way, thanks for the chocolates." She smiled shyly at him and hurried away, before he could see the heat burning her cheeks, the reddish tinge that was to remain there for days.

* * *

A/N: All right. How do I go about telling this? Okay... 

I am truly sorry for the very very long wait. I know! But I had exams and I didn't have the time to write. You know how exams can be. Oh and thank you to _ajma_ for that personal message encouraging me to write another chapter. So, here it is! And I hope you like it.

I spent a long time re-reading this chapter over and over again because I thought that maybe things are happening much to fast between them. But after hours of editing, I think this chapter fits. Anyways, how did you find it?

That reminds me. Cookies to all who reviewed: **_I'm Blond. James Blond., Kibaku, Melly Bean88, licoricesnap, ambulancechas3r, Persephone33, SenatorSolo, candycoated, hidden smile, thechosenMay, x3 Alice Liddell x3, Zoe, werecool, Resentment, BetterDeadThanAlone, Racetrack's Goil, EVERY.TiME.WE.TOUCH, Tattered.Broken.Angel, MorganisM-Lve, Raiast, Flipinpenname, VaguelyInnocent, dobbyfan18, FanFicFanatick, FireFantasma, Victoria, QueenThayet, seeker17, ailiramlove. _**

The answer to the question (And what movie was that specific scene from?), is... **Pirates' of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest**! It's a really nice movie, and I would recommend everyone to watch it! Haha. And I quote a fellow reviewer (_Tattered.Broken.Angel_), "All hail Jack Sparrow!"

In response to _Tattered.Broken.Angel, _Luna did not set them up in the garden, it was Blaise. And as to why he did it, he was just being 'Blaise-like'.

All right. Tell me what you think of this chapter. I want to write more in this A/N, but I, quite unbelievingly, want to get this chapter posted as soon as possible, just like you! So, until next time then. See you!

Remember to review please. :)


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

'_In my field of paper flowers  
And candy clouds of lullaby  
I lie inside myself for hours  
And watch my purple sky fly over me_

_If you need to leave the world you live in  
Lay your head down and stay a while  
Though you may not remember dreaming  
Something waits for you to breathe again'_

Easter came quickly and it came to the time where the where the students of Hogwarts had to test their willpower to resist going out to the beautiful weather outside and stay in the castle to prepare for their coming exams. The Gryffindor common rooms was filled to the brim with students, including Hermione who took up one whole table to herself, occupying the table with stacks and stacks of her books. The complete silence in the room (which was Madam Pince's dream to have in her library) was kept by Hermione, whose threat rang clearly in everyone's mind. Anyone who dared so much as to make one sound was sent to detention.

"See Professor McGonagall next Monday," was all she said when a first year ran screaming and laughing into the room. Of course, it was accompanied by a withering glare when being said. The frightened boy just ran off nodding and since then, not even Ron or Harry had tried their luck with her by opening their mouths.

"She barking mad!" Ron had exclaimed when Hermione scared the boy off, thus earning himself a long lecture on how important the exams were. Learning his lesson, he just kept quiet and did not rile her up anymore.

Since the common room was full, Ginny decided to go to the library where she felt her time would be better spent revising (including talking) to Luna. Finding an empty seat at the back of the library, she blushed upon recalling the events which occurred a few weeks ago just metres away from where she was now. She had concluded, with the help of Luna's advice, that her actions were not as much of a mistake as she had thought it would be. Although Draco did not do anything out the ordinary to acknowledge what happened, those long lingering looks he gave her during Breakfast told her everything she wanted or needed to know. They were enough to send her mind reeling with delight and make her stomach lurch with excitement.

"I know what – who, most appropriately – you are thinking about..."Luna wagged her finger at Ginny, with a particularly gleeful expression on her face. "People might actually think you are in a Snohart's trance."

Ginny blinked, snapping out of her daydream. "What's a Snohart?"

"They are creatures that... I think I'll tell you later. Don't you try and change the subject, Ginny." Luna flashed a devious smile.

"I didn't do anything." Ginny said innocently. The whole 'innocent act' might have worked if not for the devilish look in her eyes.

Luna grinned. "Was it a blonde-haired boy you were fantasising about before I so rudely interrupted your thoughts? Hmm?"

"I was _not _fantasizing," Ginny defended herself. "I was merely thinking about something else. Happy now?"

"No, tell me the name of that guy." Luna tapped her finger against her chin. "Is it possible that it's _D R A _–"

"Hey, miss me?" Out of nowhere, an arm slung itself on Luna's shoulder. Blaise sat down on the chair next to her and gave her a kiss on her cheek.

"Blaise to the rescue..." Ginny said, sighing with relief.

"As always." Blaise winked roguishly. "The ever handsome hero is always around to save damsels in distress."

Luna coughed violently. Ginny rolled her eyes and put on an extremely Pansy Parkinson-like high-pitched voice before faking a faint. "Help me, my dashing gentleman." She gasped, coughing and sagging out of her chair in a faint. She put the back of her hand to her forehead and continued inching off her chair. As she was about to hit the floor with a slight _thump_, strong arms lifted her up and set her back on the chair. Draco pulled out a seat and sat down.

" I'm disappointed in you, Blaise. I was fainting; I could have died there." Ginny cried dramatically. "And calling yourself a friend of mine, how could you?" Sniffling, Ginny stood up. "From this day onwards, I do not know a Blaise Zabini. Do not even dare mention that name! Ever!" Then, she broke out in wrecking sobs.

The 'audience', if you could call them that, was staring with amused smiles on their faces. "Bravo, Ginny." Blaise laughed. "You should really consider a career in acting."

"Really?" Her 'sobbing' ceased immediately and her eyebrows were quirked in surprise.

"Have you heard of sarcasm?" Draco asked.

"Not before I met both of you."

"How unfortunate." Draco replied dryly.

"Anyway, sorry I couldn't save you, Ginny. Apparently –" Here Blaise pointedly looked at Draco, smirking. "– You were hmm... how should I put this... reserved by another dashing gentleman. Who, I can safely assure you, is quite dashing himself, but of course, not as dashing as me..."

"Watch your mouth, Blaise." Draco narrowed his eyes at his best friend.

"Touché." Blaise clicked his tongue. Smirking what had to be the 'Slytherin-trademark' smirk, he continued. "That just slipped out. But as frightened as I am supposed to be, I shall have to go on. Where was I? Oh yes, reserved –"

"Don't both of you have to study?" Luna interrupted. "You _are _having your N.E.W.Ts, aren't you?"

"Are you chasing me off?" Blaise pouted, his expression oddly resembling to a cute hamster – which he was far from being.

Draco stifled a laugh. It was not often you got to see such an innocent expression crossing a Slytherin's face. Ever. Usually, smirks or cold grins were the closest to normal positive facial expressions. "Anyway," he said smugly. "What's there to study when we already know everything?"

"Oh, really?" Ginny raised her eyebrows.

This time it was Blaise who answered, with an equally smug expression on his face matching Draco's. "Yes, really."

"So... we should expect the both of you to get full marks then. Or at the very least beat Hermione."

"And if we don't, you have to do whatever we say for a week."

"And if you don't, you have to do whatever _we_ say for a week. Both of you." Ginny said confidently. "It can't be anything fatal or discriminating though. Deal?"

"Deal." They shook hands.

"Oh yes, Happy Easter." Ginny reached into her bag and took out four boxes. Nestling snugly inside, were five homemade Easter eggs in each box. She handed a box to each of them. Luna's had the picture of rabbits and carrots. Blaise's and Draco's had the pattern of broomsticks and dragons respectively. "They are homemade. From my mum."

"From your mum?" Blaise asked questioningly. "And she knows who they are for?"

"Well... I just told her it was for my friends, which is partly true..."Ginny shrugged. She opened her box and took a bite into her chocolate egg. "Mum's chocolate is much better this year. Remember what last year's was like, Luna?"

Luna shuddered. "Don't remind me. I swear, the minute I took a bite, my teeth were crying out for help."

"Why?" Blaise eyed his Easter eggs doubtfully.

"It was too sweet. When my mum owled me later on, we found out she had put a whole bucket of sugar into it." Ginny grimaced. "Guess she has been practicing." She took another bite and seeing Blaise doubtful look, she said, "You should try it, it's really quite nice now."

"Thanks." Blaise muttered. "But I'll try it later."

Draco laughed. Cackled evilly, more like. "Blaise, I didn't know you were _scared _of sugar..." Laughing at Blaise's uncomfortable look, he earned himself a steely glare of his best friend. Still refusing to take a hint, he continued laughing until a hard smack on his arm stopped him.

"Shut up." Blaise said sourly, glaring fiercely at Draco.

* * *

"Fancy meeting you here, of all places." Ginny smirked, coming to sit beside Draco, at her favourite spot – by the lake. 

The weather was calm that day and just a few breezes swept here and there, rustling up a few dried leaves and making them swirl around like a mini tornado. The waters swept back and forth serenely, the rays of sunlight catching on them and making them glint diamond-like in the sun.

"You forget that this is my tree." Draco stated.

He hadn't changed one bit at all. Maybe it was like that Muggle saying. What was it? A leopard cannot change its spots, or something like that. "It's my tree too." Ginny argued. "And it doesn't have your name on it."

"Neither does it have yours." Draco answered. Standing up, he picked up his wand and pointed it to the tree, muttering a spell. "And now it's mine," he said with a smug smirk. True enough, his name was now carved there on the tree.

Ginny raised her wand, and soon, her name was carved there too. "And now it belongs to me too."

His eyes glinted with mischief. Draco repeated the spell again, covering the whole tree with carvings of his name. "What about now?"

Ginny frowned. Waving her wand, she instantly made all the carvings disappear, except for the first two ones. "How about sharing the tree? Don't let the poor tree suffer at the hands of our selfishness."

The ends of his mouth twitched upwards. "Works fine by me." He said, amusedly.

"Want a chocolate frog?" Ginny offered when she sat beside him. He nodded and took it wordlessly. Draco opened the wrapper and popped the struggling frog into his mouth without letting it have any chance of escaping. "What did you do?" Ginny gasped, horrified. Draco gave her a look, which clearly showed that he thought that she was going mad. "You didn't even give it a chance to jump," said Ginny.

"What?" Draco asked, dumbfounded – one of the few moments in his life in where he was.

"You didn't eat the chocolate frog the proper way," explained Ginny.

"There's a proper way?" He asked unbelievingly.

"Of course." Ginny sighed. "Watch me." She opened the packaging and let the frog out.

The frog, surprised at not being caught and eaten immediately, took his chance by jumping out and landing on the ground. Without looking around, he decided to make a run for his life. Hopping madly, he headed for the forest. That was when Ginny came after him. She launched herself at him, hands trying to grab hold of him. The chocolate frog's heart, that is if he had one, jumped to his throat as Ginny was closing in on the distance between them. He knew that if this mad, rampaging girl caught him, he would be eaten.

Ginny ran after the chocolate frog, laughing as she did so. She knew how silly and childish this was, especially to Draco. But she couldn't help it; it was a habit – a very bad habit she had to curb. The frog changed direction, this time heading for the lake. The stupid thing obviously did not know it could drown itself. Ginny was nearing the frog, and soon, her hands were wrapped around it tightly, having caught the frog inches away from the edge of the lake. She opened her mouth to eat it. Just as she was about to put the frog in her mouth, she heard something that made her drop her hard-earned frog onto the ground.

A clear sound of laughter was heard coming from Draco. Ginny turned around in shock. Draco Malfoy could laugh? His laughter sounded human. Sounded... nice. It was miles apart from the smirks and cold laughs he usually made. She grinned back at him, turning her back to the frog on the ground. Sensing its chance, the frog ran the few inches forward and fell into the lake with a _'plop'_ sound.

"You lost me my frog," said Ginny sourly, pouting a little. She walked towards him and sat down, a tad bit sweaty from chasing the frog.

"Guess I owe you one then." Draco laughed.

"I guess you do." Ginny said, smiling.

* * *

Draco Malfoy walked into his dormitories and flung his cloak on one of the chairs. Running his hands through his ruffled hair, he sprawled in his bed tiredly. He was exhausted – both mentally and physically. Because of his stupid Head Boy duties, he had to patrol the corridors relentlessly till midnight. While everyone else was fast asleep, he was walking around in the corridors catching brainless first years that were stupid enough to be sneaking around the corridors _noisily_. Needless to say, all of them got a good blasting from him and twice the punishment they were supposed to have. 

He often wondered why he had agreed to take on the role as being Head Boy, not that it did him much good. Perhaps it was just to show everyone that he was better than Potter and could handle being a prefect. Maybe it was like that. Or maybe, it gave him a certain control over Potter; he could take points away from Gryffindor whenever he wanted. Of course, the mu – Granger would definitely protest, but she was too noble to take points from Slytherin back. The worst she could do was to go to McGonagall with complaints of him – without any proof of it at all.

Draco wondered why nowadays he had subconsciously stopped calling Granger a 'mud-blood'. Before, it came so easily to him, but now, he could not bring himself to say the word. Was it the Weasley's sickening influence on him?

No. He would _not _add on to his mental exhaustion.

Now, onto the cause of his mental exhaustion. As much as he did not want to admit it, it was because of Ginny, or Weasley, as he still called her. First names were usually only used by friends or family – someone that was close to a person – but definitely not by mortal enemies. Was that what he still considered her as? Mortal enemies? Perhaps not anymore. But he still was not sure exactly what he thought of her as. It was between friend and... girlfriend, perhaps? So far, he had avoided calling her 'Weasley', it just did not seem right, ever since... that night.

He remembered how she looked in the afternoon, running after a chocolate frog. That was surprising. He rarely saw; no never saw, someone running after a chocolate frog before. But then again, she was different. Her hair was flying all over her face. A sheen of sweat could be seen on her face due to her continuous running after the escaping frog. It made her look real... alive.

Yes, he had to admit, he was a little... fond of her. She was different from the other girls he knew. Take Pansy for instance, she was more into clothes and make-up (which was ridiculous), while Ginny liked Quidditch (which, in Draco's opinion, radiated more sense). Draco had been on dates before, and always, they girls he dated ate nothing more than a plate of mere salad and water. Most of the times, they did not even eat at all. When he tried to be nice (which was what his best friend so kindly suggested he be), they would sniff at him and say that eating would make them fat. Then, Draco would, in his most cold voice, say something mean to put her down and promise himself he would never go near that infuriating girl again. That was the normal routine.

He did not know the reason why, but that sort of behaviour really put him off.

Of course they would be fat if they hung around, painting their nails all day. They were extremely annoying, a bunch of worthless irritants. Ginny, on the other hand, also had the courage and the strength of character to defy whatever he said that she did not agree with, something that very few people, not to mention girls, would dare to do. It was one of her many admirable traits that intrigued him.

Perhaps girlfriend was possible after all...

Deep in thought, Draco did not notice the wildly crackling fire in the fireplace till a very recognisable voice sneered at him. "Daydreaming, Draco?"

If Draco was surprised, he certainly did not show it on his face. "Merely thinking, Father." He replied coldly. _Perfect, just the ideal time for Lucius to appear in my fireplace_, he thought.

"You better not think so much when you come into the service of the Dark Lord. Let me share this with you, Draco, since you are my son. The Dark Lord prefers loyalty and obedience, compared to thinking." Lucius warned, his voice as cold as ice.

"Just like you right? Father?" Draco gave his father a cold smirk, one he learnt from Lucius himself and perfected it over the years. "Voldemort's lapdog, _obeying _his every word without _thinking_. Just a casual reminder, Father, unused brains tend to die off after awhile."

"You will refer to him as the Dark Lord!" Lucius snarled, flames spitting out from his mouth. The fire raged around him, but that had absolutely no effect on Draco at all, who just calmly stared back into the fireplace. "And the Dark Lord rewards obedience, not thinking. Why do you think the Dark Lord trusts me so much?"

Draco almost laughed aloud. _Trust him? _How deluded could Lucius be?

Voldemort only trusted one person: himself.

Seeing Draco's expression, Lucius growled, "Let me remind you, boy. You will have to join the Dark Lord in due time, whether you like it or not. It runs in your blood, it's your destiny. It's an honour, Draco. An honour." He paused, staring at Draco's blank expression. "Even though the Dark Lord is kind enough to accept just-passes, I refuse to accept anything lower than an _Exceed Expectations_. And I want you to beat that filthy mudblood. Have you no shame, letting a mudblood do better than you all these years?"

Draco decided to keep silent, knowing that although this father could not do anything to him now, he would remember it and punish him for it when he could.

"Don't disgrace the Malfoy name, boy! It's generations of pure-blooded wizarding heritage." Lucius paused for a moment. Evidently, someone was calling him on the other side. "Remember what I said, Draco." With that, the raging flames stopped moving and he disappeared.

Draco sighed and buried his face into the pillow. That was something to add onto his mental exhaustion. Getting off his bed, he walked to his table and sat down, picking up a piece of paper that was lying there. He raised his quill and dipped it into the black ink. Then, he started writing. **_How have you been doing? _**

_Just fine. _

_**Coping with the exam stress, I hope? **_

_Beautifully. _

**_That's good to hear. I am sure you won't want to wreck your pretty little head over that. _**

_I am flattered that you think my head is pretty, but let me remind you, it has more than just beauty. _

**_You mean the occasional 'waste materials' that happens to land on your pretty head by incorrigible birds?_**

_Of course not, you dimwit. I meant 'brains'. Not that you have any. _

_**We shall see when the exam results come back, shall we? **_

_We shall, Monsieur. Are you having your N.E.W.Ts? _

Draco paused for a while, contemplating what to write as his answer. He decided on the truth. There were so many seventh-year students around, she would never know. Besides, she had the right to know the truth, after all.

_**Yes. **_

_Good luck, then. _

**_I don't need luck. _**

_Everyone needs luck. _

_**Not me. **_

_Well, I hate to see what you would be like today if you didn't have luck. _

**_Please... my life would not be any different with or without luck. It's already bad enough as it is – with luck. _**

_But look, there are thousands of other people in this world that has a worst life then you. And some of them are not complaining. _

_**How do you know? Physic visions? **_

_Because I have a brain, dimwit. _

**_I am not a dimwit. Far from it, mind you. _**

_All right. I shall reserve my judgment till the day you get back your results. _

**_Are you taking your N.E.W.Ts then?_**

_Nope. _

**_So you can't be a seventh-year then. _**

_Obviously. _

_**Please tell me you are not in your first year. **_

_Do I sound like an eleven year old? _

_**Sometimes, when you get horribly childish. **_

_I am in my sixth-year, for goodness sake. How can I be 'horribly childish'? _

**_You'd never know. _**

_Okay... As I w – Hang on._

_**What? **_

_Wait. Don't write anything. _This message was scrawled rather messily, not at all like her usual handwriting.

_**Why? **_

_Don't write anything. Someone is here. _Draco could hardly make out the words written here. They were so messily scribbled; they could have passed off as some chicken scratches.

The next message was clear to Draco that it was not the person he normally talked to that was writing it. And it also showed that whomever he had been talking to, had been caught red-handed by someone else who disapproved.

_Who the bloody hell are you? _

* * *

A/N: I hope I didn't use the swear words (bloody hell) wrongly. As I don't say the words, I have no idea how I am supposed to phrase it, or how it's used in speech. Anyways, I just wanted to make that person seem more in character and 'not-Ginny'. 

I think the question this time would be: **Who was the person that interrupted Ginny's conversation (via the parchment) with Draco? **

I look forward to your answers!

As always, the people who reviewed. (Thank you!): **_zoe, -Timeless Angel-, Tomsgirl2005, BetterDeadThanAlone, Resentment, (there's one unnamed review, so thank you, still), ambulancecha3r, hypa4evr, LadyOfTheCelticLand, werecool, Raiast, padfootedmoony, hidden smile, RazzlebeDazzled, FanFicFanatic, VaguelyInnocent, FireFantasma, Flipinpenname, Silly.Pink.Rabbits.Eat.Only…, ajma, nun outfits are cool, harrypotterchick4ever, I'm Blond. James Blond., Melly Bean88_**

So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Well, you know what to do... (:


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16 **

'_Does it give you pain when I cry_

_Or does it give you utmost joy? _

_Does it fill you with gleeful pride_

_To see me cowering in your sight?_

_What would you do if you saw me bleed_

_Would you just stare and mock at me?_

_If I were to die one day_

_Would you laugh or feel the shame?'_

Ginny could only watch, horrified, as Ron scribbled something onto the parchment he had just grabbed out of her hand. It was all her fault, she knew. She should not have been writing on that parchment in the common room. But it was one of those rare chilly nights, and she could not resist the warm fire crackling in the common room.

"What is this?" Ron had said, snatching the parchment out of her hand. 'I swear I saw it writing back a minute ago."

Paranoid that it was another version of Tom Riddle's diary, Ron scribbled something onto the parchment. He was convinced that he was protecting his sister and saving her life yet again.

"Of course it's writing back, Ron." Ginny said exasperated. "It's the parchment that Dumbledore gave us."

"Are you sure, Ginny?" For all you know, this could be another…"

"Another what, Ron?" Ginny snapped, losing her patience. "Another talking diary? For your information, Ronald, this is not a diary. It's the charmed parchment Dumbledore gave us to write home with. Or have you forgotten already?"

"But… this still could be…" Ron trailed off and Ginny interrupted him.

"For Merlin's Sake! I am sixteen years old, Ronald. And I can very well tell the difference between an evil talking diary and Dumbledore's charmed parchment!" Ginny burst out. Her outburst seemed to have convinced Ron that she was right. But he was still quite suspicious, nonetheless.

"Who were you talking to then?"

"Does it matter, Ronald? And if you really need to know, it was Mum." Ginny tried casually.

"Mum?" Ron frowned, and that was when he wrote a message on it.

Ginny sighed. This was not good. Not good at all. What if the person did not know what was going on and told Ron everything, thinking it was her? Ron would probably have a fit there and then. She had to get it back from him before the person replied, somehow. "Give it back, Ronald."

"Not till I see who is this first." Ron said stubbornly.

"Give it back, Ronald. It doesn't belong to you. And what did you write?" Ginny lunged for the parchment in Ron's hand, but she missed as he moved it out of her way quickly.

"I just asked who it was." Ron looked at the parchment for a reply. A few minutes later, a reply appeared (to Ginny's horror).

**_Don't you dare use such language in front of me! Who are you?_**

"Sounds like Mum, alright." Ron muttered.

"What language?" Ginny asked, peering over Ron's shoulder. "What exactly did you say?"

"Nothing." Ron defended himself. "I didn't say anything." _Your son,_ he wrote, in response to the question. He was quite convinced that it was his mother. After all, who would scold him just for using the words 'bloody hell'? Only his mother did that.

"Your son?" Ginny wondered what the person on the other side would be thinking when he read this.

"Of course. It's Mum, isn't it?"

"Yes. Isn't it obvious?"

The answer that came back dispersed Ron's doubts, if he had any left.

_**What are you doing? I am trying to talk to your sister! Well, was trying to talk to your sister. **_

Oh. Sorry, Mum. I thought I saw the parchment talking back and I was worried that – you know.

"Ron!" Ginny cried, sensing that if he said any more, he was definitely going to spill the whole story out. If he let loose any more information, her identity would be revealed. Not to mention confirmation to the four-year-old rumors and she was the culprit who opened the Chamber. She was well over the nightmares that haunted her for weeks after. It happened so long ago, that it had reduced to a faint, distant memory of her childhood; that did not bother her at all.

**_I know. _**The message appeared, after a pause.

I have to study now. I love you, Mum.

There was a long pause. And in Ginny's opinion, the words in the message appeared very forced to her. But then again, who could blame him?

_**I love you too. And don't bother your sister! **_

"All right." Ron said. "I have to study, Ginny. Hermione's killing me with all her nagging. She sounds exactly like Mum, but worse. See you around!" He waved at her before disappearing into his dormitories.

"Thank Goodness," Ginny breathed in relief. After going back to her dormitories, she continued writing.

_What was that all about? _

_**What? **_

_Loving my brother? I shall tell him he has a secret admirer who, I should think, is male. _

_**Shut up.** _Was the sour reply.

_You can't tell me to shut up._

**_Yes, I can. Whose fault was it that an unthinking Hippogriff discovered the parchment? A very rude one, as a matter of fact. _**

_All right… it was my fault. Happy now?_

**_Perfectly. _**

_And please don't insult Hippogriffs by saying that. Hippogriffs are cute, intelligent, not to mention, lovable creatures. Which my brother is not._

**_As if. Hippogriffs are horrible, ugly, monstrous creatures on the loose. _**

_No, they most certainly aren't!_

**_Yes, they most certainly are!_**

_Fine. Be that way. If you don't broaden your thinking, you will just be like a frog in a well, staring at one patch of the sky for your whole life; never knowing how the whole world looks like._

**_No one knows how the whole world looks like, missy. _**

_That's why we have to broaden our thinking and learn as much as we can about the world and about life._

**_Please excuse me while I fall asleep during this torturous lecture. _**

_Only morons don't appreciate the world._

**_Then you must not be referring to me. For I appreciate the horror, cruelty, harshness and demands the world brings. _**

_The world does not only consist of that. It also brings happiness, laughter, hope, compassion, grace and most importantly, love._

**_Well, I am not too sure about that. _**

_You can trust me on it then. The world is created in a balance. For instance, hate and darkness might exist, but love and light also exist in this world. Look on the bright side of things: a cup can be half-full, instead of being seen as half-empty._

**_All right. At the very least, my vaults are spilling with gold. Is that bright enough for you? _**

_Not bad. But I am sure you can do better._

**_I'm devilishly handsome. _**

_Umm… that's not looking on the bright side of things. That's ego boosting, something of which you absolutely don't need anymore of._

**_Aha! _**

_What?_

**_So you agree?_**

_To?_

**_So you think I'm devilishly handsome? I knew it. _**

_I didn't say that._

**_But you didn't 'not' say that. I knew you would succumb to my charms soon enough. _**

_Don't flatter yourself. Other girls might 'succumb to your charms', but not me._

**_You are denying it because it's true. _**

_I'm denying it because it's not true._

**_Go on deluding yourself then. What happened to 'I-must-broaden-my-thinking'? _**

_Agreeing that you are handsome is not 'broadening my thinking'; it's being stupid and suicidal._

**_Suicidal? Come on, it's not as if I would kill you if you said I was handsome. Quite on the contrary, I'm, afraid. _**

_Of course I know you won't kill me._

**_Then?_**

_I'd kill myself._

* * *

Exams were definitely not Ginny's 'thing'. She sighed as she walked through the doorway. She was free! Free at last – from revising and more revising. What would she do today? Sneak out to Hogsmeade? Go flying? Read an intriguing novel? There were so many fun things she could do, now that she had just finished her last paper. And the good thing was: she was quite confident that she would do well. Her hard work actually did pay off. (It had better, for she sacrificed a lot of her fun activities for the exams.) Of course, some of the credit had to go to Draco and Blaise. 

Blaise had almost gone crazy trying to explain to Ginny why salamander blood was used in most potions instead of a toads' blood, which was more common and easier to find. As far as Ginny was concerned, both ingredients were just blood and could be used randomly.

"It's different, Ginny!" Blaise had almost yelled. "It's a wonder you passed Potions!" he had looked like he was going to pull his hair out in frustration.

Chuckling at the thought, she glanced at Luna, who was burying her nose in a book, muttering something along the lines of 'no… I got this wrong… It can't be…"

"Come on, Luna!" Ginny cried, snatching the book away from Luna and laughing. "The exams are over!"

Luna glared. "It's bad luck to not think of your answers after the exams. And I don't want to do badly, thank you very much." She snatched the book back from Ginny. "Leals don't like people enjoying themselves after exams, so they curse the people with bad results. Here, have a book."

Ginny took it and nodded dumbly. "You do know that Leals aren't r–" A hand clamped over Ginny's mouth before she could even finish her sentence. If it were not Luna doing it, Ginny would be sure the person was smothering her to death.

"Don't say that!" Luna whispered, as if someone could hear her. "Everything someone says that, their marks are cut by half." Ginny's response was just to nod her head vigorously, seeing that she could not say anything. "Don't say that again, all right?" Again, her reaction was to nod. And finally, Luna took her hand off Ginny's mouth.

"Where was I again…" Luna muttered to herself, flipping the pages and returning to her book. Whilst beside her, Ginny rubbed her mouth with the back of her hand, frowning slightly. She then returned the book to Luna's bag, adamant that she wasn't going to do any studying after the exams.

Ginny spent the day flying, reading and sneaking into Hogsmeade for a short drink. She even spent some time talking to her 'parchment friend'. It was a daily ritual now; to talk to him. Ginny knew she should not be so attached to him, since she didn't even know who he was in reality and to top it all off, she did not even know his name after months of conversation. He could be a mad first year, for crying out loud.

The school year was coming to an end, and as Ginny lay in her bed, she thought of all the things that happened. On reflecting, she concluded that it had been quite a good and exciting year; with friendships that she did not ever think of created. And a whole lot of 'broadening your thinking' experiences included. As an example: the prejudice against the Slytherins was… uncalled for. They could be quite nice – well, when they wanted to be. And maybe some of them were, but not all of them were Death Eaters. Overall, it had been quite a fruitful year. The only thing left now was to get 'fruitful' results.

A loud tapping sound interrupted her thoughts. Looking around, she realised that it was coming from her window. Outside, a majestic snow-white eagle owl was hovering, poised in all its glory against the dark night sky.

It hooted at her and immediately entered Ginny's dormitories, brushing past her like it owned the place. It settled itself comfortably on Ginny's bed, ruffling its white feathers and casting a glance at Ginny, which showed her it wanted to be relieved of its load. After grooming itself, it hooted again and stuck out its leg at Ginny for her to untie the letter.

Ginny had no idea who owned this owl. There was a reason why she didn't own one and that was because owls were expensive. More expensive than the normal owls were the eagle owls – the most prized breed of owls in the Wizarding world. It must have been particularly difficult to get hold of a white eagle owl (they are usually brown), not to mention a completely pure white one at that.

As Ginny untied the letter, the owl glanced up at her haughtily, showing no fear or discomfort staring at Ginny eye-to-eye, like most owls would be. The owl fluttered up to the windowsill, evidently not waiting for a reply. Casting one more proud glance at Ginny, it gracefully flew away, fading to a small speck in the night sky.

Opening the note (it was of good quality parchment, Ginny could tell), she found that there was only a short sentence written on it.

_Meet me at the Room of Requirements, midnight._

_D.M._

She should have known whom the owl belonged to. It really took after its owner too well. Ginny, after reading it, put the note on her table where she could see it, and not miss her appointment at midnight. He hadn't changed at all, still the same old, bossy Draco Malfoy. There was not even a reason stated there as to why she had to meet him. But still, she decided to go; her curiosity already peaked, she couldn't resist not going there to see what he had to say. Pawsome, who had been sleeping, awoke and jumped gracefully onto the table. She took the note between her teeth, careful not to dent the paper and went to Ginny, nudging her before dropping the note onto her lap.

"I've already read the note, Pawsome." Ginny said, stroking the kitten's shiny white fur.

Pawsome meowed softly at Ginny and nudged the note towards Ginny again. She looked up at Ginny, meowing. It was as if she was trying to tell her something.

"I've read it already." Ginny glanced at the kitten again. "Are you trying to tell me something?"

Pawsome, having no ability to talk, continued meowing insistently and pushed the note into Ginny's hands.

Confused, Ginny looked at the note again. Pawsome was trying to tell her something – she knew it – but she had to figure out what it was. She also knew it had something to do with the note. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she looked up and the meowing kitten again. Wait… something was niggling at her. Ginny looked at the note again and all at once it hit her. She knew that handwriting; she had been seeing it for months.

And she also knew where she had seen it before…

* * *

Ginny walked towards the Room of Requirements. It was Hermione patrolling tonight and she knew what route Hermione was taking. Hence, she could sneak out without needing an Invisibility Cloak or worst, being caught loitering the corridors by Hermione. With ease, she located the door to the Room of Requirements and entered. 

Draco sat, in a dark green armchair. He had his eyes closed, currently deep in thought. His face was cleared of all emotion and looking so serene (a look she had never seen him wear) that she thought he was asleep. Her thoughts, however, were proved wrong, when his eyes snapped open suddenly the moment she entered the room. She watched as his eyes ran over her silently before coming to rest on hers.

"Draco," said Ginny, as she closed the door and took a step into the room. At first, Ginny thought she saw a shocked expression flash across his face, before it disappeared as quickly as it came.

"Ginevra," he managed smoothly. "As much as I would like to stay here, I think I'd prefer a walk. Shall we?" He rose from his seat and opened the door for her in a gentlemanly fashion, waiting for her to walk through it.

Hesitating a little, Ginny eventually gave in and walked out. He closed the door behind her and settled to walking beside her. After a few minutes in silence, Ginny said, "Well, nice owl you have there."

Draco glanced at her briefly. "Her name's Artemis. After the Greek Goddess of Hunting."

"It's a she, then. She's really beautiful."

"Thank you, I suppose."

"Welcome. Where are we walking to?"

"The lake." Draco answered shortly, steering Ginny away from the corridor and leading through a narrower tunnel. "It's a shortcut," he said, in response to her questioning look. "Only Slytherins know about this tunnel. It's some sort of a bizarre House secret."

Ginny cocked an eyebrow. "And you are showing it to me?"

"It's not like you're going to remember where you are going." Draco smirked. "The passageway is so complicated, I had to be led here about six times before I could get myself in and out. And not to mention all the exploring I had to do to find out where the different forks in the tunnel led. People have been lost in these tunnels before, only to be found a few centuries later; nothing but rotting bones left. " Looking at her Ginny's terrified expression, he added, "Don't worry. I know my way around these tunnels."

"I know, but…"

"But?"

"But what if you _think_ you know your way around, when in truth, you actually don't. People have died in here!" Ginny tried to say calmly, though the last part of her sentence came out as a shriek. "And just because of your stupid pride, we may actually be the next victims to stay here for another hundred years!" She looked around desperately, trying to find a ray of light to lead her out, but the only light she found was that of the candles that were lining the sides of the corridor.

Draco's eyebrow was in danger of disappearing into his hairline. "You give me way too much credit, Ginevra. And for the records, I'm not as stupid as you might think I am. We won't end up died in this tunnel, I can assure you. The tunnels loves me, I am probably its most frequent visitor."

"Yeah… and if you are not careful, we might be visiting this tunnel _permanently_." Ginny said, scowling at him with her arms across her chest. She wanted to be out of this cold, damp tunnel, but within the first five minutes in which they had entered it, it was already too far into the tunnel to turn back. Plus, she needed a guide, and Draco certainly was not considerate enough of her feelings to listen to her.

"Look on the positive side of things, Weasley. I don't want to deal with an irritating, crying and whining girl now."

"I do _not_ cry and whine," said Ginny, contrary to what her mind was thinking now. But she would rather be stuck in the tunnel for a night than admit it to him. But for a century… she had to think about it. "Besides, I think this tunnel is the only object that loves you. Tragic, isn't it? To have a dark, dirty tunnel be your one true love?"

Draco shot daggers at her. "The tunnel may love me–" Here, he looked slightly disgruntled, but he carried on. "–But I most certainly do not harbour any romantic feelings towards it. It is allowed to love me, just as half of the female population at Hogwarts is, but that does not mean I will reciprocate its feelings."

"What a romantic speech, Draco." Ginny exaggerated. She heaved a great sigh and ignored the steely glares he gave her. "Tunnel? Do you hear that? He says–" As she was about to repeat his speech to the tunnel, he interrupted her.

"I know what I said, Ginny." He said, dryly, continue walking along the passageway and turning a right, dragging Ginny along with him.

"Why can't we go left?" Ginny challenged and yanked her wrist out of his grip and made for the other tunnel.

"You could, if you wanted to have your life sucked out of you by a Dementor."

Ginny's eyes widened and she stopped in her tracks. "Are you kidding?"

"No."

"You mean there really is a Dementor down there? Does Dumbledore know about it?" Ginny panicked, turning as far away as she could from that particular tunnel and walking next to Draco, where she knew it would be the safest; as he would definitely not want to risk his own precious skin and would take the safest route possible.

"Yes, there really is a Dementor down there. And no, Dumbledore does not know about it." Seeing her reaction, he answered her question before she even had the time to open her mouth and ask him. "It's not as if any Slytherin, once learning of the Dementor, would nobly walk up to the Headmaster and tell him about it." Draco sneered. "We are not like Potter, you know."

"But… but…" She could not bring herself to say it. "What if someone gets killed?"

"Everyone who knows about this tunnel knows about the Dementor down there." Draco explained, as patiently as he could; but knowing him, his patience was not going to last very long. "It's one of this tunnels most notorious secrets, handed down from every Slytherin to Slytherin. And if you are going to ask, the Dementor is trapped in that tunnel by powerful magic spells, the only time where it gets to attack someone is when someone ventures down, otherwise, it cannot come up into Hogwarts on its own. Out of the ten Slytherins who went down, only one lived to tell the tale. That's how everyone knows about it. So there, happy?"

Ginny visibly swallowed, though her hands were not trembling like before. Ever since Harry told her what almost became of his godfather, Sirius Black, and the encounter she had in the train when she was coming to Hogwarts for her second year, she was terribly frightened of Dementors. "I was just wondering, can someone enter Hogwarts through this tunnel? I mean, it leads to a lot of places, doesn't it?"

"It does." Draco agreed. "However, Hogwarts has a lot of powerful spells protecting it. Dangerous things are not permitted in regardless of how many tunnels there are. The magic forms some sort of magical barrier surrounding the school." Predictably, his patience did not last long and soon, he smirked at her. "Didn't pay much attention in History of Magic, did you?"

"I would–" Ginny protested. "If the sight of Binns did not make me terribly sleepy. Seriously, he is better than a Dreamless Draught potion. More effective, plus, you get your dreams and fantasies back." For about the first or second time Ginny ever saw it, a small smile formed on Draco's face. Not an unkind smile, nor a smile of cruel satisfaction; like the one he wore when he mocked Harry, Ron and Hermione. Rather, it was a smile that showed he was really happy inside, and truly found whatever she said amusing. And Ginny smiled back. "Who taught you all these things?" Ginny asked, spreading her hands out and motioning to the tunnel and beyond. Once, she had said it, she immediately regretted it.

Draco's smile faded straight way and his grey eyes darkened. "My father."

"Draco… I'm sorry. I really did not mean to bring him up t–" She was cut off halfway.

"It doesn't matter." He said roughly, thrusting his hands into his pockets. Not wanting to distress her, he added in a gentler tone. "It's not your fault, so don't apologise."

They walked in silence. All at once, Ginny's light and happy mood gained from the conversation disappeared. _Stupid me._ How could she be so stupid as to being up his father just when they were having a civil and rather interesting conversation? Even after knowing what his father was forcing him to do, she still brought his father up? Ginny could hit herself.

As she pondered her carelessness dejectedly, Draco suddenly came to a stop.

"What's wrong?" Ginny asked.

"Did you hear that?" Draco murmured quietly, shushing her with his finger.

"Hear what?" Ginny whispered, as her heart started pounding faster. Was it another Dementor that no one knew of?

"I thought I heard voices."

Voices? Ginny thought. Then it wasn't a Dementor. Dementors could not talk, could they? "Where?"

"Coming from here." Draco pointed in the direction in which they were about to walk towards. "It's getting louder."

Ginny heard it now. Some muffled whisperings coming from the direction Draco had pointed to. It was definitely a Slytherin. And if he or she saw Draco with her, both of them would be in trouble. Unquestionably, he would be in bigger trouble as his parents tended to be… more violent than hers.

In a fast motion, Draco dug inside his robes for his Invisibility Cloak and draped it over Ginny and himself. Thankfully, he had foreseen the need to bring it, or they would be toast now. He pressed himself against the tunnel's wall as much as he could, motioning for Ginny to do the same. She did.

Then, as the footsteps and voices became louder, both of they tried to be as silent as possible and wait for the couple (it sounded like one) to pass them without noticing anything. Footsteps drew nearer and Ginny pressed herself into the wall so hard, she might have sunk into it. In her nervousness, she found herself being unconsciously drawn closer to Draco so much so their shoulders were pressing against each other's.

As the couple appeared in front of them, Ginny was very thankful they could not see her. For if they had known she was listening, she would have probably been killed before she could even leave the tunnel. And why was that? It was because the topic of the two Slytherin's conversation was only meant for a Death Eater's ears. It was very top-secret and ominous things they were talking about.

Very sinister indeed.

* * *

A/N: Hmm… rather spooky ending, don't you think? I still have yet to say what Draco's motives were for meeting Ginny, so stay tuned to find out. 

Haha. The sentence before this sounded like a television programme. I suppose it is, in some ways. Just that the 'television' is in your heads, imagining the scenes I am writing out. I love the poem on the top. I find it achingly beautiful, don't you?

As usual, all the reviewers who helped me get this far. At first, since it is like 1.22am now (see? I stayed up just to type this out and post it), I considered not putting this, but after a second thought, I decided that all of you deserve the recognition, so here it is: **_felton1fan, -Timeless Angel-, Resentment, Chase, Raiast, werecool, ambulancechas3r, Cherry-Black, harrypotterhchick4ever, EverythingMarieSueIsn't, Hellcat81, Netholor, hidden smile, thechosenMay, VaguelyInnocent, Candy Momo, zoe, BetterDeadThanAlone, Scoopy, padfootedmoony, Tattered.Broken.Angel, RedheadObsession, hypa4evr, RazzlebeDazzled, nun outfits are cool, TheSlyGuyIsMine, FanFicFanatick, nilber, Tomsgirl2005, Flipinpenname, ladyofthecelticland._**

And yes, that person, as you all know by now, is Ron! Applause for all who got it right! (:

To _harrypotterchick4ever_ and _padfootedmoony_: Ahh! I am sorry if I got you all excited thinking it's a new chapter. I updated it again because there were some minor changes made. Anyways, here's a new chapter! At least you didn't get excited over nothing. (:

To _HellCat81_: Yes, Luna is a Ravenclaw in the book, but I decided to make he Gryffindor in here. I needed a best friend for Ginny that was the same House and age with her, and I thought Luna was the best candidate. Thanks for asking!

To _Scoopy_: I've made changes to it already. Thanks for pointing that out!

To _RazzlebeDazzled_: Thanks for adding me to your fav and alert list! It's really appreciated. (:

To _TheSlyGuyIsMine_: Thanks for reviewing then!

Did I miss anyone out? I sure hope I did not. I'm really sorry if I did, though. Because nowadays the review alerts are not really working, so some reviews are not sent to my email, and I listed the reviewers out from the emails I was sent.

So… **What do you think are Draco's motives for meeting Ginny? **

Send in a review and tell me what you think!

P.S. A lot of the reviews said they enjoyed the 'frog' scene in the last chapter. I am glad you enjoyed it, people! So did I! (Well, while I was writing and re-reading it.)


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17 **

'_Just say goodnight_

_I'll be gone tomorrow_

_Just close your eyes_

_I can't take the sorrow_

_Just walk away_

_You know I can't stay_

_There's no easy way to say goodbye_

_So just say goodnight.'_

Ginny could feel her breathing coming out in loud gasps. Desperately, she tried to control her breathing and muffle the sounds with her hand. But unfortunately for her, a sharp nudge from Draco informed her that she was not succeeding very well. She was... hyperventilating, if you could call it that. Never before in her life had two Death Eaters cornered her to a wall, literally. She figured they probably were in Voldemort's 'inner circle', due to their extensive knowledge of the Death Eater activities.

Parkinson and Nott; Ginny could recognise them clearly, walked closer to an invisible Ginny. All at once, Ginny tensed up, reason being that she was afraid that they would somehow get caught and also because she had a hard time suppressing the chills running down her spine which was the result of Parkinson and Nott's topic of conversation.

"The Dark Lord isn't too happy with your father's performance lately, I've heard." Parkinson's simpering voice said. "What did he do again? Mess up the Dark Lord's plan, as per usual?"

"How am I supposed to know?" Nott snarled. "That's top secret."

"Really, Nott..." Parkinson drawled, running her long perfectly manicured fingernail along Nott's cheek. "How naïve can you get? Have you heard of the word 'rumors'? And you must know, unless you are Crabbe or Goyle, that I know all the gossips there is to be known. Plus, I know whether it's a fact or just another useless rumor."

"If my father did not even tell me, how can you find out?"

"He didn't tell you..." Parkinson asked. "Why not? Too humiliated that he let the Dark Lord down again?"

"Don't talk about what you don't know, Pansy." Nott glared venomously at her. "He looked horrible, with all the bloody gashes on his back; there was hardly any skin left."

Parkinson laughed, a loud, horrible high-pitched, keening sound, which reminded Ginny of a banshee. "Those who fail him, incur the Dark Lord's horrible wrath." She droned on prophetically, sounding akin to Professor Trelawney.

"You are sounding like Trelawney." Nott snapped. "And Merlin knows how much stupid and useless the old hag is." Nott stopped in his tracks, pulling Parkinson along with him. "Do you know the reason my father was punished?" He asked, his eyes hooded.

"Are you asking me to tell you why?" Parkinson stopped laughing and smirked at Nott. "You don't know yourself? Seriously, I pity the girl who's going to marry you." She glanced at Nott. "Why should I tell you anyway?" While he didn't answer, she continued, "I do suppose you ought to know the answer, since it's your father. As I would like to know if anything happened to my father," she muttered more to herself than to Nott. "It would make it much easier to plan my steps to ascend to the highest ranks the Dark Lord's army has to offer. You father? Well, he was punished because he failed to guard one of the prisoners properly. That prisoner, a member of the Order of Phoenix, managed to escape under your father's watch and went to Dumbledore with news on the Death Eaters. I heard that the Dark Lord's fury was terrible to behold that night." She shuddered involuntarily.

"Merlin. No wonder he hardly comes home nowadays; Mother told me." Nott cast a dark glance at Parkinson. "And when we get back into the common room, you better shut up about all these Death Eater talk. Someone might mistake you for one."

Parkinson glared at him. "I am not the one who talks as much as you. And besides, we are _not _Death Eaters... well, at least not yet."

"You know something..." Nott drawled lazily. "I'm beginning to doubt the loyalty of some of our friends... Have you noticed that more Slytherins are not planning to aid the Dark Lord in war?"

Parkinson frowned. "I guess..." Then, as if she had a brilliant idea, she smiled cheerfully. "At least we still have Draco, that counts for something."

"Yeah..." Nott agreed, rubbing his chin. "He has it all; the brains, good family relations to the Dark Lord, and of course, the gold."

Beside her, Ginny could practically feel Draco shaking with suppressed rage. And she didn't blame him one bit. She could not imagine what it would be like if _her _friends said that about her. If she had 'the brains, good family relations and gold', that is.

Parkinson grinned evilly. "Yes, the gold. But I have noticed that he doesn't seem too interested in me nowadays." She frowned. "He's not the same as before; hardly paying me any attention these days. And he does not seem to excited when his father Floos over too."

"Between you and me, who can be excited when Lucius Malfoy Floos over?"

"That's true..." Parkinson pouted, and Ginny could feel the bile rising in her throat. "Do you think Draco would ask me to marry him once we leave school?"

Nott laughed loudly, his laugh echoing eerily down the long passage. Ginny felt Draco flinch beside her. "Are you marrying him for the gold, or because you really like him?" He asked, a mocking grin on his face.

"Gold, of course. I'd be a fool not to want it. Plus, there's the added bonus that he's handsome."

"Don't you have enough gold to last you three lifetimes?"

"One can never have enough money." Parkinson said with a smug grin. "Anyway, I saw this beautiful dress that day, which I'm going to bug Draco to buy it for me."

"Has he bought you anything before?"

"Never." Parkinson said, grimacing. "Even when he was interested in me, he never did bought anything for me. Not once, the lousy miser. I'm going to get him back though. There have been rumors that he's seeing another girl, and when I find out who exactly that slut is, she'll wish she'd never been born."

"What are you going to do to her?" Nott replied, interested. "What if the rumors you heard are not true, anyway?"

"My sources are reliable." Parkinson said proudly, jutting her chin out haughtily. "And if you really want to know what I am going to do to her, you shall find out on the day I catch that lying little whore."

"Glad to know I am invited," said Nott sarcastically. "It's going to be a party."

"Let's get back to the common room." Parkinson snapped. "I _do _have to catch my beauty sleep, you know. Even Death Eaters-in-training need to sleep, we are not some bunch of walking sleepless zombies." With that, she strode off without Nott, not looking back at all.

"Like beauty sleep is going to do much for her looks." Chuckling at his own joke, he made his way towards the common room.

Once making sure they were really gone, Draco pulled the cloak off in a swift movement. Ginny knew he was upset over what was being said, and she did not blame him one bit. She herself was upset at what they said. Less people was joining the Death Eaters, which was good news. But the bad thing was that now, everyone would be counting on Draco to join Voldemort, and if… if he refused, the consequences would be more severe.

"Ouch!" Ginny grumbled, rubbing her cheek where the cloak had smacked her as Draco had yanked the cloak off so roughly in his anger. "You needn't be so rough..."

He glanced at her, and a guilty look crept into his eyes. "Sorry." He said shortly and started walking towards the lake alone.

It was obvious that it was his first time apologising to anyone. Ginny laughed inwardly. Well, at least he had tried. She made after him; already a dark shadow in the dim lighting. "Hey!" She called. "Wait up, Draco!" He turned, and stopped walking, waiting for her to catch up. Ginny could tell that he was slightly embarrassed, due to his apology, which proved he was actually quite humane.

The rest of the walk to the lake was short and in a few minutes, they were there. Draco made his way to the tree that was 'shared' between them and sat down, with Ginny following suit.

The whole atmosphere of the place was so different at night. The full moon could be seen, surrounded by grey puffy clouds. The round moon glowed silver in the dark, reminding Ginny fleetingly of Draco's whole silver orbs. The forest was a dull grey in the night, with the trees swaying to and fro, like they were doing a dance. The light of the moon was reflected clearly onto the surface of the lake. It was beautiful.

After a few minutes in silence, Draco spoke. "Well, that conversation was quite... enlightening." He was referring to the conversation between Parkinson and Nott. When Ginny looked at him in the eye, he saw himself reflected in those brown eyes of hers. With that, his resolve to tell her exactly what he wanted to say to her faltered. He couldn't, but he must.

"Yes, well... They are not your friends, are they? And friends meaning someone like Blaise."

"Of course not." He frowned at her. "Do they seem like the type to be best friends with? Pansy is merely using her father to ascend the ranks of Voldemort's army and is also using, well me, to get her whatever she wants. And Nott is using her to get information on his father and of the Death Eaters. And just to let you know, I'm never going to marry her." Draco shuddered. "Merlin knows how poor I'd be then."

"All this 'making use of people thing' is starting to give me a headache." Ginny whined. "Why can't everyone just live in peace? And I'd _die _laughing if you ever married Parkinson. Imagine your kids: as manipulative as her and as spoilt and arrogant as you. Oh the horror of it all! The world would then come to an end."

"That's _disgusting_." Draco made a face in disgust. "I'd never marry her, much less have kids with her. Malfoys have the reputation of being smart and intelligent, however evil or mean they there. With her as the mother of my kids, I can't even imagine how incredibly stupid they would be."

"Yeah..." Ginny laughed. "And not to mention –"

"Can we just get off this topic? It's really making me feel sick."

"Fine." Ginny crossed her arms over her chest. "You are such a spoilsport." She stuck out her tongue at him. Grinning, she asked. "Why do you call him Voldemort? I thought usually people called him You-Know-Who or in the Death Eaters' case, The Dark Lord. Very few people call him Voldemort. But there are exceptions, of course." She finished, thinking of Harry and the Order.

There was a long pause. "Is there even an answer to that question?"

"I guess not..."

Draco chanced a look at her. "I don't think the title of being a Lord befits him very well. But, as you can see, other Death Eaters might not think so."

"They don't think at all," said Ginny, laughing slightly.

"Most Slytherins do not have the capacity to think. There are, obviously, a few exceptions."

"Indeed. You are one of the exceptions, I suppose."

"Naturally." Draco smirked arrogantly. "Though Blaise isn't too bad himself." Draco said, after a second thought. "I've been wanting to tell you something." He hesitated. "That's why I asked you to meet me. I've been thinking..." He looked at her for her reaction, but she just nodded calmly. He opened his mouth, and closed it again. It was hard... Never in his life had he thought that there would be a day where he would actually be tongue-tied, in front of a Weasley no less. Then again, there was always a first time for everything. "I don't think this is going to work out." He dropped the statement bluntly, seeing no other way to say it. Draco avoided her gaze deliberately for a while, but in the end, he turned and looked at her.

Draco had hoped he had not reduced her to tears, just like he did to a lot of girls (he did not count exactly how many) at Hogwarts, but to her surprise, she was not even crying at all. Her face was just an impassive blank, and he recognised it to be a look he always wore in front of everyone else. He was _really_ rubbing off her. He took it as a sign to continue. "I mean, we are too different... You are going to be in the Order, and I'm going to be a Death Eater. You're a Weasley, I'm a Malfoy. We are on the opposing sides of war, for crying out loud. Even if there was no war, our families hate each other. Do you think they would agree to us seeing each other?" He sounded as though he was trying to convince himself, rather than Ginny.

Ginny was silent. Even her eyes were masked, with no emotion whatsoever.

"Are you listening to me? Good God, Ginevra, could you say something?" Draco asked. Her silence made it all the more worse for him. Usually, he would be done with his 'I-want-to-break-up-with-you' speech and would probably be walking off to his rooms by now, leaving the poor girl, whoever that was, to her weeping, but... but Ginny's silence was just... compelling him to go on. Go on about what, he had absolutely no idea. He went on when she didn't say anything. "We should just pretend nothing happened. That this whole... relationship didn't start at all. That we still don't like each other even though our best friends like each other and drag us on their dates sometimes."

Draco was rambling, he knew it. But he did not know what to say and Ginny's complete silence was not helping either. And once he started, he couldn't stop himself. "That I don't find you as irritating as the other Weasleys. That I think you are the nicest girl I have ever met. And if we go on pretending that nothing happened, we might start believing it ourselves. And we'd do just fine without each other. That –"

Ginny cut into his rambling. "But what if fine isn't great enough? And what if we wanted extraordinary?"

"Then... then we'd just have to make do..." Draco was glad Ginny had said something at last. For one moment there, he thought she had gone mute. Her silence just now had almost killed him. It was like driving a stake though his heart, for some reason or the other.

There was an awkward silence. Draco didn't remember silences as being awkward for him. He would usually fill it up with sarcastic and witty remarks or let the other person suffer the awkwardness of the silence, as he had no qualms about it and did not feel uncomfortable at all. Regret seeped into every pore of his being as he looked at Ginny.

"Ginny, you know why we cannot be together." Draco filled up the silence. "You heard Pansy yourself, didn't you?"

"I heard her, Draco." Ginny said evenly. "I was there, remember? Or have you already forgotten about me?"

Guilt washed over Draco and he really felt sick. He had never experience this feeling before. His head was spinning. Taking deep breaths, he tried to curb the urge to throw up.

"You are in love with someone else, aren't you?" Ginny said somewhat knowingly.

"Yes, I'm in love with someone else." Draco forced out, still trying to resist throwing up his insides. It would make the situation worse than it already was, seeing his vomit would land on Ginny, as she was seated next to him. And that was definitely not good news.

"Well, then... If that's what you want..." Ginny said, her voice wavering. "I... I should go." Ginny stood up, brushing the leaves off her skirt; she turned and looked at him. "Goodnight, for the last time," she said softly. "Goodbye, Draco."

"Goodbye, Ginny." Draco watched as her retreating figure, and once she was completely out of sight and in no view to see what was going to happen next, his restraint broke. He threw up all his dinner; his mincemeat pies and everything else he ate. Feeling sickened and revolted at himself, he paused for a while to breathe before throwing up again.

* * *

Ginny walked towards the Great Hall for dinner. Not that she ate much. Since Draco had told her what was on his mind, she didn't really feel the need to eat anymore. Still, she forced herself to. It was essential in keeping up the charade with Harry, Ron and Hermione, and of course, in order to hide her disappointment from Draco himself too. She had hoped he would be different, but unfortunately, he turned out just like the others. Useless and disappointing.

She sat at her usual spot and tried to be herself; chatting with Luna and the Golden Trio. Luna, of course, knew what happened. And that meant Blaise knew what happened as well.

"Hi, Ginny!" Colin said brightly as he settled down on the seat opposite hers.

'Hello." She said, giving him a false bright smile. There were lots of teeth in the smile, but no heart in it.

"I was thinking..." Colin said nervously.

_Nothing good ever came out of that phrase_, she thought. On the outside though, she said sweetly. "Yes, Colin?"

"WouldyouliketogotoHogsmeadewithmethisweekend?" He asked in a rush.

"What?" Ginny could hear Luna snigger next to her.

"Would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?" Colin turned red. "You know, the day after the exam results are released."

"I would love to." Ginny said with a smile, before digging into her food. Colin smiled warmly at her before joining his friends on the other side of the table. Ginny, not saying anything continued eating.

"Ginny, are you trying to choke yourself to death?" Luna asked, eyeing all the food stuffed in Ginny's swollen cheeks.

"I just want this to be over with." Ginny said, after forcing herself to swallow. And it was not easy.

"Listen, Ginny. I know you are upset, but please, stop trying to choke yourself. I don't want a dead best friend," said Luna sympathetically.

"I'm not up–"

"Just do as I say." Luna said, in a voice that brooked no arguments.

Just then, an owl flew into the Great Hall, dropping a note into Ron's lap. Everyone was surprised; letters this late usually were delivered during breakfast in the morning. What could be so important that the letter had to be delivered now?

"What is this?" Ron said, with his mouth full of food.

Harry took it, and with Ron's permission, opened the letter. "It's a message from Dumbledore." The owl that delivered the letter ruffled its feathers and just flew away without waiting for a reply. "It says that you and Ginny have to meet him at his office right now. Oh, and me and Hermione can come along too."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Hermione asked, at the same time reading the letter over Harry's shoulder. "It sounds urgent. I think we better go." Motioning to Ginny, she rose from her seat, dragging Ron up with her.

"I'll see you later." Ginny muttered to Luna and followed her brother and his friends to Dumbledore's office.

Soon, they reached the office and saying the password (it was written in the letter), they entered. Knocking on the door, they entered the office. Ginny had been inside Dumbledore's office a few times before and of all the times, it had not been good news awaiting her. A sense of foreboding crept into her as she walked towards Dumbledore.

"I have bad news for all of you." Professor Dumbledore said, his usually twinkling eyes now dark. He looked at them through his half-moon glasses. "I don't think this is a time for pleasantries, so if you would excuse me for the standing. I believe this would be of a shock to you."

Everyone went quiet.

"Mr Weasley and Miss Weasley, you'll be immediately Portkeyed to St. Mungos. It saddens me to say this but your father has yet again been seriously injured during the course of working for the Order. The good news, which I doubt you would really consider in such a time like this, is that Mr Potter and Miss Granger are allowed to join you if they consent to."

Ginny's heart plummeted. It was bad news after bad news for her recently.

"Of course we are going." Harry cried. "Mr Weasley is like a father to me, Professor. How badly is he injured, sir?"

"He was wounded by several Death Eaters, Lucius Malfoy, mainly. The injuries are serious, but he'll survive." Professor Dumbledore said grimly.

_Thank Heavens. _That was all Ginny wanted to know. But injured by Lucius Malfoy? Good Lord, that man was vicious. She began to tear, worried about her father's condition and of course, Draco. How could he have possibly survived living with a man like Lucius? It was a miracle. No wonder Draco behaved the way he did. It was not his fault.

"All of you will be excused for two days, starting tomorrow. Any messages you want me to pass to your friends?" Professor Dumbledore asked kindly, the question mainly directed at Ginny.

"Would you help me tell Luna, sir?" Ginny managed. When he nodded in response, Ginny thanked him.

"It's time. Here is the Portkey." He said, bringing out an old sock. "On the count of three, touch it and Molly will be there waiting for you. One. Two. Three." At three, everyone grabbed a hold of the old sock, the world started to spin around Ginny and uncontrollably, she felt a single drop of tear leak out from under her eyelids.

* * *

A/N: I've been planning out my chapters and I have decided, there are only going to be a few chapters till the end of this story. Not to worry, I've got a nice ending planned all for all of you!

My faithful reviewers: **_thechosenMay, RedheadObsession, Raiast, RazzlebeDazzled, ambulancechas3r, Resentment, hidden smile, BetterDeadThanAlone, nun outfits are cool, Cherry-Black, ladyofthecelticland, Velfin, Hellcat81, FanFicFanatick, werecool, padfootedmoony, Blackheart09, harrypotterchick4ever, Flipinpenname, felton1fan, AmelieFoy._**

Pansy's being a tad bit possessive don't you think? With all her schemes to get Draco back. Eww. I cannot stand those type of people. Poor Draco, with all his vomiting...

Truth to be told, there has been quite a drastic drop in the reviews and you know, the feeling of disappointment kind of creeps in. I understand that you all are busy, but please, spare a few minutes telling me what you think.

I am planning on another story, but I am not really sure when it's going to be posted or what it's about yet. I need to think about it.

So, that's it for now!

See you soon!


End file.
